Christmas Carol, Huron Carole and a trip to Narnia: Calgary entertainment

Things are ramping up for the holiday season with no shortage of entertainment options in Calgary. The list this weekend includes The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, A Christmas Carol, numerous Christmas markets, Tom Jackson's Huron Carole and a specially decorated Lougheed House. 

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Alberta Theatre Projects has a new production of the classic children's story by C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The land of Narnia is brought to life on stage in the Martha Cohen Theatre. It involves young actors and a magnificent puppet. Darcy Evans is the executive and artistic director at ATP and also directed this production.  

"One of the really interesting things about this production is that the audience is on three sides of the stage, and so the action is really, really close to the audience," Evans told CBC. 

"So when Aslan the lion enters, it's just this extraordinary, extraordinary moment because he is a giant puppet, he's about eight and a half feet long and six and a half feet tall, and he's operated by two actors who are inside of it. So when he enters and walks down the stage, basically right in front of the audience, it's pretty exciting."

The Alberta Theatre Projects production of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe runs until Dec. 29.

A Christmas Carol

Theatre Calgary launches its annual tradition, A Christmas Carol, tonight. 

Scrooge, Tiny Tim, the three ghosts — the whole gang will be back to give us Charles Dickens' classic tale.

The production runs Nov. 28 through Dec. 28 at Max Bell Theatre.

Noel Christmas Light Park and Market

There's a new light festival in town and it's all indoors. It's called the Noel Christmas Light Park and Market. There will be an interactive light tunnel and two 15-metre Christmas trees.

Organizers say it's the largest of its kind in Canada. Along with the lights, the market offers artisan crafts, kids activities and craft beer.

The Noel Christmas Light Park and Market starts tonight and goes until Dec. 31 at the Nutrien Centre in Stampede Park.

Calgary Expo Holiday Market

For all you cosplay fans, the Calgary Expo Holiday Market is this Saturday at the BMO Centre. It's a one-day-only shopping extravaganza. There will be collectibles and memorabilia, costumes, limited edition graphic novels — but there's also a special area where you can meet the rising star writers and artists of the comic book industry.

And there's a Cosplay Red Carpet. So you are welcome to dress up and strut your stuff if you are so inclined.

There's also a contest to win a Calgary Expo Prize Pack that includes tickets to all four days of Calgary Expo 2020. That contest will be hosted by Garrett Wang of Star Trek: Voyager. He's the guy who plays Ensign Harry Kim.

Lougheed House 

This Saturday, Santa visits the freshly decorated Lougheed House.

The 1891 Victorian mansion in the Beltline gets decked out with the help of Calgary's top interior designers. They've been doing this for more than 10 years and this year they have a green, sustainable theme.

"Many of our designers use 'used' coffee filters in their designs, which sounds weird, but they created beautiful flowers in trees," said Holleay Rohm, is the programs manager at Lougheed House. 

"And then our floral designer, Lea Romanowski, is moving in the direction of couture fashion. She's also created mannequins that are dressed up in sustainable fashions. And so one of her gowns has the coffee filters woven into this sort of wearable wreath around the model's neck. It's really beautiful."

Rohm told the CBC's Ellis Choe that the designers also used natural products like dried orange slices to create wreaths and garlands. And the creativity doesn't end there.

"We are also very fortunate that Women in Need Society and Goodwill partnered with us for this season," Rohm said. "And so from working with them, many of our designers have taken old sweaters or scarves and woven them into tree skirts and new covers over pillows, and some of the other ornamentation on the trees."

Starting this Saturday, you can have breakfast with Santa, right there in the middle of a beautiful mansion. 

Bianca Del Rio

Roy Haylock, better known as Bianca Del Rio, is performing at the Jubilee Auditorium on Saturday at 8 p.m.

Haylock is the RuPaul Drag Race champion from Season 6, and calls herself a "Clown in a Gown."

"My drag name is Bianca Del Rio. The best way to describe me is an insult comic, kind of like Don Rickles in a dress, only  prettier," she told CBC.

Tom Jackson's Huron Carole

Activist, actor and singer Tom Jackson's 32nd annual Huron Carole arrives in Calgary on Sunday at the Grand Theatre. Jackson will perform his classic Christmas music concert for Calgary audiences from 5 to 7 p.m.

Classic Albums Live: Pink Floyd

Arts Commons is bringing Classic Albums Live: Pink Floyd, tonight at Jack Singer Hall. In case you're not familiar, Classic Albums Live is a performance of musicians who play the music of an entire album. Tonight, they're featuring Pink Floyd's The Wall, which is described as rock opera spread over 26 tracks and two CDs.