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10 top Milwaukee Christmas concerts to check out
The most wonderful time of the year is also the most predictable. ❚ Every Christmas season there are the same movies and specials on TV, the same songs on the radio, the same food and drinks. Nothing wrong with that — especially after the stressful year many of us have had, we deserve the comfort of the familiar — but it’d be nice if those beloved traditions could get a fresh tweak. ❚ With Christmas concerts, they do. Each holiday season in Milwaukee brings a similar crop of acts performing Christmas classics: your swing band, your soul singer, your Celtic artists, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. But the performers, the set lists, the interpretations, they vary from show to show, with the best of them truly offering “the most wonderful time.”
Plenty of people evidently feel that way in Milwaukee, with area holiday concerts featuring Phil Vassar, Kellie Pickler, Jim Brickman and others already sold out. But tickets are still available for these 10 shows.
1. “Christmas With the Nelsons”: The holiday concert season starts before Thanksgiving with Gunnar and Michael Nelson, best known for the ’90s rock band bearing their last name, and sons of late singer and actor Ricky Nelson. 2 and 8 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, Northern Lights Theater, Potawatomi Hotel & Casino, 1721 W. Canal St. $35 at the box office, (800) 7453000 and ticketmaster.com.
2. Bittersweet Christmas Band: You won’t find a cozier Christmas concert experience than this house concert featuring traditional folk musicians Phil Cooper, Kate Early, Margaret Nelson and Susan Urban. 4 p.m. Dec. 3, Beulah Brinton House, 2590 S. Superior St. $15 suggested donation at the door. Advance reservations recommended; call (414) 702-6053 or email beulahbrintonhouseconcerts@gmail.com.
3. “Cirque Musica Holiday Presents Believe”: Traditional big top music is swapped out for Christmas songs performed by a live orchestra, providing the musical backdrop for acrobats, clowns and other performers. 7 p.m. Dec. 4, Riverside Theater, 116 W. Wisconsin Ave. $41.25 to $81.25 at the box office, the Pabst Theater box office (144 E. Wells St.), (414) 286-3663 and pabsttheater. org.
4. “The K-Love Christmas Tour 2017”: The leading Christian radio network has assembled four leading CCM acts for the Milwaukee stop of its Christmas tour, including Steven Curtis Chapman, Plum, We Are Messengers and Marc Martel. 7 p.m. Dec. 6, Riverside Theater. $19.99 to $199.99.
5. “Big Bad Voodoo Daddy: Wild and Swingin’ Holiday Party”: Trade the holiday sweaters for zoot suits as the eight-piece swing band performs songs from its “It Feels Like Christmas Time” album. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7, South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, 901 15th Ave., South Milwaukee. $20 to $50 at the box office, (414) 766-5049 and
southmilwaukeepac.org.
6. “Hip Hop Nutcracker”: Tchaikovsky purists, steer clear. Everyone else can check out a fresh new take on the classic holiday composition, with 12 dancers and Kurtis Blow, the first rapper signed to a major label, as the night’s DJ. 8 p.m. Dec. 7, Riverside Theater. $35.50 to $65.50.
7. “Jewel’s Handmade Holiday Tour”: Between her acting roles and books and original songs, singer-songwriter Jewel has released two Christmas albums, which should be the focus for this two-night residency. 8 p.m. Dec. 12 and 13, Northern Lights Theater. $80 to $90.
8. “The Colors of Christmas”: The “Colors” tour has been crisscrossing the country for 25 years, featuring noted R&B artists like Jennifer Holliday and late Milwaukee native Al Jarreau, but it hasn’t been in Milwaukee for several years. This year the city’s on the itinerary, and Peabo Bryson, Ruben Studdard, Jody Watley and Marilyn McCoo with Billy Davis Jr. are on the bill. 8 p.m. Dec. 14, Northern Lights Theater. $70 to $80.
9. “Holiday Harp with Kim Robertson and Friends”: Wisconsin native Robertson’s talent on harp has taken her across the world, but she’ll be back in her home state right before the holidays; her “friends” include students from the Cashel Dennehy School of Irish Dance and a harp ensemble from the Irish Fest School of Music. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 16, Irish Cultural and Heritage Center, 2133 W. Wisconsin Ave. $10 to $25 at the door and ichc.net. Free for children ages 12 and under.
10. Trans-Siberian Orchestra: The last TSO tour overseen by founder Paul O’Neill before his death in April takes its inspiration from the TSO-scored TV movie “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve.” A note to local TSO devotees: This is the same primary theme featured at last year’s Milwaukee shows. 3 and 8 p.m. Dec. 29, BMO Harris Bradley Center, 1001 N. 4th St. $44 to $84 at the box office and through Ticketmaster.
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Find out about the week’s must-see shows, concert tickets and more in the newsletter “Piet Levy’s Music Picks.” Subscribe at jsonline.com/newsletters.
Piet talks about concerts, local music and more on “TAP’d In” with Jordan Lee, 8 a.m. Thursdays on WYMS-FM (88.9).