Bell Tower Theater Announces
​ A Nice Family Christmas

Dubuque, IA — The Bell Tower Theater, your hometown theater, is pleased to announce their final comedy of 2019, A Nice Family Christmas by Phil Olson. The performance will be directed by the Bell Tower Theater’s Artistic Director Sue Riedel.

It’s Christmas Eve, and a reporter on the brink of being fired has been assigned a story about a typical family Christmas – his family’s Christmas. He goes home to his widowed mother, crazy uncle, eccentric grandmother, battling siblings and their neurotic spouses—no shortage of material. But when they learn that he’s writing an article about them, the fruitcake hits the fan. Will the magic of Christmas bring this family back together?

The cast features Bell Tower veterans Debbie Meyer, Sue Flogel, Don Brauhn, Tye Stecklein, Jon Aguilar and Bridget Leary along with newcomer to the Bell Tower stage Megan Frankovich.
The Bell Tower Theater is conveniently located in Fountain Park at 2728 Asbury Road in the city’s vibrant West End just minutes from both Highway 20 and the Northwest Arterial. Performances are every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. from December 6 to 22. December 6 & 7 are the Early Bird Special performances when tickets are just $10.50. Tickets for all other performances are $21. Thursdays are Girls’ Night Out; all audience members get a free glass of wine. For information and to purchase tickets call 563-588-3377 or visit us online at www.belltowertheater.net.

---

It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year at the Grand Opera House

Dubuque, IA – Take some time this Holiday Season to leave the hustle and bustle of shopping and prepping behind, and spend time with your loved ones watching a Christmas classic at the Grand.

There is something for everyone at the Grand Opera House! This Holiday Season the Grand is offering a Family Friendly play, a traditional ballet, a Christmas show for Adults, and a New Year’s Eve concert featuring the music of Frank Sinatra brought to you by the Dubuque Arts Council. So, slow down, relax, and take a little time to enjoy the season.

Opening on Black Friday, November 29th, A Christmas Story returns to the Grand. After a nearly sold out run in 2016, Director Frank McClain is restaging this Christmas Classic. A treat for the whole family, A Christmas Story is a stage version of the 1983 classic film based on the memoirs of humorist Jean Shepard. All the elements from the beloved motion picture are here, including the family’s temperamental exploding furnace; Scut Farkas, the school bully; the boys’ experiment with a wet tongue on a cold lamppost; the Little Orphan Annie decoder pin; Ralphie’s father winning a lamp shaped like a woman’s leg in a net stocking; Ralphie’s fantasy scenarios and more!

A Christmas Story performs November 29, 30 & December 6, 7 at 7:30pm, and December 1 & 8 at 2:00pm. Adult tickets are $23 and Under 18 are $15.

In December, The Dubuque City Youth Ballet presents their annual production of The Nutcracker Ballet. A Dubuque Annual Tradition, this classic ballet features the students of the Academy of Ballet located inside the Grand Opera House. The Nutcracker Ballet tells the classic tale of Clara and her Nutcracker Prince as they travel through the lands of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Flowers, and the Snow Queen. The highlight of the Dubuque Holiday Season, this show is not to be missed.

---

The Nutcracker Ballet performs December 14, 20, & 21 at 7:30 PM, and December 15 & 22 at 2:00pm. Adult tickets are $23 and Under 18 are $15.

If you can only take so much family time at the Holidays, Who’s Holiday is the show for you! Life has not treated Cindy Lou Who well since we last saw her as the wide eyed 2 year old in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. And this Christmas, she is prepared to tell you all about it. So pull up a chair, because the kettle is on and Cindy is ready to spill some tea.

---

Who’s Holiday performs December 23 & 25 – 28 at 7:30pm. All tickets are $15. This is a General Admission performance with limited seating capacity. All seating is on stage.

The final performance of 2019 is brought to you by the Dubuque Arts Council. Featuring The Hunter Fuerste Orchestra and crooner Bryan Anthony, Celebrating Sinatra; His Life in Music is a great way to end the year, and welcome the next.

---

Celebrating Sinatra performs on December 31st at 8:00pm. All tickets are $35.

​Tickets for all of these shows can be purchased in person at the Box Office located at 135 W. 8th Street in Dubuque, or by calling (563) 588-1305. Box Office hours are Monday through Friday from Noon until 4:00 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased on our website at www.thegrandoperahouse.com. Additional fees may apply.

Christmas Games Old and New
​by Lucie Winborne

Gabriel Nicolet

A Victorian-era game of “Snapdragon”

The shopping and wrapping are done, the tree is decked out with lights and tinsel. You’ve hung the holly and you’ve frosted the cookies, and now you’re ... a bit tired of watching the same old Christmas movies and hearing the same carols on the radio. How about taking a leaf from our ancestors’ book and gathering the family and friends for some Christmas-themed games instead?

Snapdragon

From the 16th century onward, a good Christmas Eve party quite likely included a boisterous game of “Snapdragon.” The premise, as zany as it is simple, called for pouring a couple dozen raisins in the bottom of a shallow bowl, followed by a bottle of brandy. With lights dimmed and brandy ignited, participants took turns trying to snag a raisin, and, if successful, extinguish it by eating it. (Note: We take no responsibility for any burns sustained while imitating this at your house!)

Shadows

Those of a bit less daring nature might have enjoyed a game of “Shadows,” in which an individual sat in front of a white tablecloth or sheet hung in a darkened room, with a lamp behind it. The rest of the party then took turns passing in front of the lamp, so the viewer could guess their identities by their shadows. To make things more challenging, participants maneuvered their bodies or clothing however possible, though if the guesser correctly identified them, they were subject to a forfeit or taking the guesser’s place.

Questions and Commands

A precursor to today’s “Truth or Dare.” Failure to follow a command, or answer a question, would either cost you a fine or get your face blackened with fireplace soot!

The Messenger

Reminiscent of “Simon Says,” this parlor game involved one player entering the room and addressing another with “My master sends me to you, madam” (or sir). At the response of “What for?” the messenger would perform a simple but silly action for the responder to repeat, with each guest doing so in turn until everyone in the room was in motion, after which the messenger would exit and reenter the room with a new command. Stop moving too soon, and you’d pay a forfeit.

Blindfold Christmas Drawing

Back in the 21st century, try tapping into your artistic side with “Blindfold Christmas Drawing.” Grab some markers and paper plates, then have one player describe a Christmas scene while everyone else —blindfolded, of course! — tries to render it on their plate. The most accurate drawing wins.

Pin the Nose on Rudolph

Little ones especially will enjoy “Pin the Nose on Rudolph,” or “Find Santa’s Friends,” in which toy elves and reindeer are hidden around the house like Easter eggs. And for the older fry, a holiday version of “Two Truths and a Lie” can generate a lot of ingenuity and laughs by asking players to name three Christmas gifts, only two of which they actually received at some point, with the rest of the group trying to guess which one’s a fake.

The fun is limited only by your imagination. Happy holiday gaming! 

​© 2019 King Features Syndicate, Inc.

Celebrate the Holidays with the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra
​ Dec 7-8 at Five Flags Theater

David Bernard conducting Beethoven Symphony No. 9 at Carnegie Hall — Park Avenue Chamber Symphony credit Matt Dine

Begin this festive season on a high note as the DSO is joined by guest conductor David Bernard, Broadway vocalist Tamara Jenkins, the Dubuque Chorale, and members of the Heartland Ballet in an enchanting collection of holiday favorites! Jenkins, a classically trained singer, is well known in the industry for her versatile vocal stylings and her crystalline soprano. Broadway acting credits include ‘Velma’ in Chicago, ‘Cosette’ in Les Miserables, ‘Demeter’ in Cats, and the ‘Eliza’ cover in the Richard Chamberlain revival of My Fair Lady.

Bernard serves as Music Director of the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony and the Massapequa Philharmonic, New York. A multiple First Prize winner of the Orchestral Conducting Competition of The American Prize, Bernard’s noted recent performances include a Lincoln Center performance of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring (“Conducting from memory, David Bernard led a transcendent performance…vivid…expertly choreographed.”, LucidCulture).

Concerts will be held Saturday, December 7 at 7:30pm and Sunday, December 8 at 2:00pm. Ticket prices begin at $17.

The DSO also offers a Family concert Saturday, December 7 at 1pm. This shorter program features kid friendly holiday music and sing-along songs, with appearances by Jenkins, members of the Heartland Ballet and the Dubuque Chorale Children’s Choir. Children are invited to get their picture taken with Santa for free immediately following the concert. Tickets to the Family Concert are $12 for children 12 and under, $22 for adults and $32 for box seats.

Tickets are available through ticketmaster.com, or save online fees and buy direct at Five Flags Box office 4th & Locust M-F 10am-5pm, or one hour prior to concert in theater lobby, based on availability.

​The Holiday concerts are made possible by the generous support of Medical Associates Clinic and Health Plans. For more information, visit
www.DubuqueSymphony.org or call the symphony office at (563) 557-1677.

Let’s Rip It Up
featuring Everett Dean and
​Girl Group Sensation The Jersey Girls Tuesday, December 31 @ 7PM

Everett Dean

Let’s Rip It Up: Let’s Rip It Up: Celebrating the Birth Of Rock N’ Roll & Beyond, is a show that covers the music to from early day’s of rock n’ roll to today!!! Hear the music of Jerry Lee Lewis, The Supremes, The Four Seasons, The Beatles, Whitney Houston, Etta James, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Christina Aguilera, Motown, disco and many more! Starring rockabilly/rock n’ roll recording artist, Everett Dean; and girl group sensation, The Jersey Girls. As appeared at the Paris Hotel, in Las Vegas.

Sloppy Joes and chips will be served before the show starting at 5 PM. Beer, wine and concessions will also be served. 

Tickets: $25 (in advance) $30 (at the door).

​Tickets can also be purchased at The Ohnward Fine Arts Center 563-652-9815 (from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm Monday - Friday), Osterhaus Pharmacy and the Maquoketa State Bank Main Office, Hartig Drugs in Preston and the Bellevue Pharmacy in Bellevue.

Tickets are also available online at www.ohnwardfineartscenter.com.

Come early to enjoy the 15th Annual Festival of Trees. 

Also available again this year you can purchase a Holiday Family Gift Pass. This pass offers you four passes (tickets) to any of our 2020 Ohnward Fine Arts Center productions. Easy to use and you save money! Each Holiday Family Gift Pass is just $80. Simply call 563-652-9815 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. or just stop into the Ohnward Fine Arts Center at 1215 E. Platt Street in Maquoketa to order yours today!

The Jersey Girls

My first cousin, Henry Fagan, an only child, was our educated cousin who visited us for a week every other year. When my son, Jerry was three years old, he delighted in pouring coffee or water from one cup into another. He was warned, “When Henry is here for supper you are not to pour or spill anything on the table or I would slap you.”

All went well until Henry tipped his glass and spilled his water. “Why don’t you do something to Henry? He spilled the water,” warbled Jerry.

Henry laughed so hard and enjoyed the reprimand that in his diary he had written this up as one of the best sayings of children.

My favorite food was my mother’s homemade bread. She used two cakes of dry yeast foam soaked in warm water, and the potato water was saved when the boiled potatoes were drained.

She made 14 loaves and a square pan of biscuits that fit snugly in the oven.

We had full freedom on how many biscuits we could eat. We buttered them well and had a choice of jam or jelly. It gave us a lot of energy to do the evening chores.

The farm served as an introduction of learning to do any and all jobs that needed to be done.

I will name what might go on in an ordinary day in July. We remember these jobs were assigned once, but must be done daily “No questions asked.”

Feeding and watering the chickens: morning and evening.

Fill the wood box with wood from the wood shed, carrying about twelve sticks on our left arm while we held it on with our right hand. We balanced ourselves on a two-plank boardwalk — Somehow we managed to get the kitchen door open, and plopped it into the wood box.

Keep the three-three gallon buckets of water full.

Three neighbors did not have telephones so we often delivered messages to them, with orders to “Come right back.”

After dinner (which was 12 o’clock) one day a week we were allowed to visit a neighbor or have children come in to play.

We must always be home by 3:30 to get the cows home to milk, gather the eggs, wash them and place them in a thirty dozen egg case.

The chickens’ house must be carefully fastened to ward off wild animals killing them or the chickens would wander out early in the morning, and be killed by some hungry animals.

Evening found us ready for outdoor games and swing on the maple trees rope swings.

The last command was “Wash your feet before you go to bed.” “Be on your knees for the family prayers’” that were led by my father.

​My first and only school until eighth grade was finished, was just over the hill from my home. My father was the school director. He hired the teachers, we cleaned the school — he always neglected to mow the school yard until about a week before school started. This left sharp stubbles to scratch our bare feet and legs. After going barefoot all summer, last year’s shoes were too small. The school building was very small. The single and double desks were crowded which left narrow isles that led to the front of the room to recite. We stood to read our reading lesson aloud after studying it.

Swedes Begin Christmas
with St. Lucia Day

Jenny Nystrom

As the winter holidays approach, we hear much about Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and New Year’s, but little about a lovely, cherished custom of Scandinavia where the Christmas season begins on Dec. 13 with St. Lucia Day, and ends on Jan. 13 with the feast of St. Knut. St. Lucia Day is more widely observed in Sweden than in other Scandinavian countries, and although primarily a family observance, there are public ceremonies in most offices, hospitals, factories, schools
and churches.

In the home, in early morning, the eldest daughter wakes the parents and the rest of the family and serves them coffee or tea and a saffron-flavored bread (Lussekake) or buns (Lussekatter, Lucy cats). Symbolizing St. Lucy, the Italian virgin martyr, she wears a flowing white gown, signifying purity, with a red sash for the blood the martyr shed. She wears a metal crown of leaves studded with seven tapers, which before electricity were lighted candles but now are battery-powered. She is followed by her sisters in white, and white-clad brothers with tall, cone-shaped paper hats with stars. They are called star boys.

Here in America, the Church of Sweden in New York City holds a grand ritual on the Saturday closest to the 13th that attracts so many people that they must hold multiple performances at a larger church nearby. It begins with the church entirely darkened, and at an appointed time Lucy enters followed by 50 to 70 handmaids and star boys, each carrying a light and singing the Italian melody of “Santa Lucia” with Swedish lyrics. It quite moving and dramatic as the lamps gradually light up the church. 

Incidentally, the Swedish pronounce it “Lu-SEE-uh”; the Italians say “Lu-CHEE-ah.” The connection between the Swedish and a Sicilian is vague, but one theory is that Lucy carried smuggled food to hiding Christians in tunnels, and to free her hands to carry the food, she wore a wreath of candles on her head.

​© 2019 King Features Syndicate, Inc.

Previous Page     -     Next Page