Selections for the holiday season

Virginia School of the Arts is celebrating the holidays with what Executive Director Tyrone Brooks calls “a puzzle of diversity.”

“In Perfect Harmony,” scheduled for 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 12 in the E.C. Glass High School Auditorium, will celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa through theater, music and dance.

The program will open with three blessings, one for each holiday, and will continue with excerpts from “The Nutcracker” and performances from local singers Marcia Jones Thom and Bettina Butler, Diamond Hill Baptist Church, the Holy Cross Singing Angaels and members of the E.C. Glass Choral Department — all accompanied by VSA dancers.

“It is such a diverse program,” Brooks says. “It is in perfect harmony … because we’re utilizing everyone in the community — black, white, Christian, Jewish — under one roof.

“Every time I look in on a rehearsal, I get so excited.”

The event is replacing VSA’s annual performance of “The Nutcracker” with E.C. Glass.

With both schools celebrating important anniversaries — VSA’s 25th season and Glass Theatre’s 30th — Brooks says they just didn’t have time to mount the demanding production.

“We all have a lot of things going on, so we decided to try something different,” he says. “I think people like a change. Change is good.”

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at VSA, Carolina Connection or Givens Books. For more information, call (434) 847-8688 or visit www.vsaart.com.

VSA’s show is one of many going on this holiday season. Here are ten more events to keep an eye out for:

Thursday, Dec. 3

Jefferson Forest High School is putting on a production of “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” at 7 p.m.

It’s based on the Paramount Pictures film, which tells the story of two buddies putting on a show at a picturesque Vermont inn. Other show dates are 7 p.m. Dec. 4 and 5 and 3 p.m. Dec. 6. Tickets are $5 for students and seniors and $8 for adults. They can be purchased at the JF Box Office on show nights at 6 p.m. Reservations can also be made in advance by e-mailing dtickle@bedford.k12.va.us.

Friday, Dec. 4

Three performances of “A Tuna Christmas,” set for 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Renaissance Theatre, will benefit the College Hill Neighborhood School, a Madison Street nonprofit preschool that operates entirely on donations and grants.

The play, the second in a series of comedic plays set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, takes place the day before Christmas, when most of the citizens are decorating their homes for a contest.

Jeff Krantz, who runs College Hill and is active in the community theater scene, stars in the two-man show alongside fellow local actor Tom Baker. The duo plays 21 different parts — men and women, teenagers and senior citizens.

“You name it,” Krantz says, “we play it.”

Tickets are $25 on opening night, and include a reception that starts at 7:15, and $15 on Saturday and Sunday. They can be purchased by phone at (434) 845-4427 or online at www.LynchburgTickets.com.

Two other shows also debut Friday night: Liberty University’s “The Gifts of the Magi” at 7:30 and 9 p.m. and another production of “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” at Rustburg High School at 7 p.m.

“Gifts of the Magi,” also showing at 7:30 and 9 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, is set during Christmastime in New York and focuses on young lovers Jim and Della, who are both out of work and penniless. Not wanting to forego the holiday, they decide to part with their most precious possession — she, her beautiful long hair, he an heirloom pocket watch — in order to buy presents for each other. Donations accepted at the door will go to the Lynchburg Salvation Army. For more information, visit www.Rustburg’s version of “White Christmas” is $5 per person, with subsequent show dates at 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday. Tickets can be purchased at the door. For more information, call (434) 332-5171.

Saturday, Dec. 5

The Jefferson Choral Society is opening its 20th anniversary season with an annual family Christmas concert, Peace on Earth, at 7:30 p.m. at Heritage United Methodist Church on Leesville Road.

A second performance is scheduled for 4 p.m. Sunday.

The concert, which will also feature the Jefferson Youth Chorale, includes serious seasonal classics like “O Magnum Mysterium,” as well as lighter tunes like “A Musicological Journey Through the Twelve Days of Christmas.”

Tickets are $20 for adults and $8 for students; children 12 and younger get in free with an adult ticket holder. They can be purchased by phone at (434) 528-5700, online at www.LynchburgTickets.com, or in person at Blue Marlin Seafood, Boonsboro Drug, Givens Books, The Summit, Aylor Farm and Garden in Forest, Millers Jewelry in Altavista, What a Blessing Bakery in Amherst and Arthur’s Jewelry in Bedford.

Sunday, Dec. 6

Lynchburg College is holding a Carols by Candlelight service at 7 p.m. in the Snidow Chapel.

The family-oriented service features readings, congregational hymns and musical responses based on the stories of Jesus Christ’s birth. It will feature the college’s Concert Choir, Handbell Choir and faculty Centennial Brass, as well as a choir composed of children from the LC community.

Saturday, Dec. 12

The Lynchburg Figure Skating Club’s 4th Annual Christmas on Ice Show is scheduled for 2 and 7 p.m. in Liberty University’s LaHaye Ice Center.

The show will feature 50 local skaters, ranging in age from 4 to 40-something, performing 15 routines choreographed by coaches Yvonne Nelson-Reid and Kyle Smith. Nelson-Reid is a former competitor in the Canadian National Championships in synchronized skating, and Smith is a 17-year-old Bedford County native who competes, coaches and is currently training to audition for Disney on Ice.

Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 the day of the show. They can be purchased in person at Lifeway Christian Stores and Givens Books or online at www.lynchburgfsc.com.

Friday, Dec. 18

Forest-based country singer John Sines Jr. is headlining an Inspirational Country Concert at 7:30 p.m. in the E.C. Glass High School Auditorium. Jimmy Fortune, Glenn Shelton and opening act Jacob Russo, a local up-and-comer who performs more pop-centric inspirational tunes, will join him.

The concert is a joint effort from local music promoter Radio City Radio and WYYD.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online at www.ticketweb.com or at the gate before the show. Kids 12 and younger can get in for free if they’re with an adult ticket holder and bring an unwrapped toy, which will be donated to Toys for Tots.

Saturday, Dec. 19

The Academy of Fine Arts is celebrating the holidays with A Feast for Christmas, a joint show with Cantate and the choirs of St. John’s Church, at 7:30 p.m. in the Warehouse Theatre. A second show is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday.

It will feature the American premiere of the title piece, a cantata by English composer Alan Bullard, and the choirs will be joined by a brass quintet and a narrator.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $13 for children; those 12 and younger get in free. They can be purchased by calling (434) 846-TIXX.

Wednesday, Dec. 23

Local singers Marcia Thom and Paddy Dougherty are coming together to perform a selection of new and old holiday tunes at Christmas and Candlelight, a fundraiser for the Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra. The performance is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Oakwood Country Club.

They’ll be joined by guest artists, including pianist Anna Billias and members of the Harp Song Harp Ensemble, directed by Virginia Schwenninger. The orchestra itself is not performing.

Seating will be limited to about 130 people, and tickets are $75 each, with tables of eight for $500. Tickets can be purchased online at www.LynchburgTickets.com. Call (434) 845-6604 or visit www.lynchburgsymphony.com.