December
Friday 12/23
SAN JUAN
Cowboy Heritage art show
Southwest Roundup Studio Gallery, 106 Third St., San Juan Bautista, will be hosting Cowboy Heritage Art through Dec. 24. Original paintings and fine art giclee prints will be featured. Features include watercolors by Don Weller; Oils by J.N. Swanson; stone art by Susan von Borstel; acrylics by Shannon Lawlor; framed vintage Charles M. Russell and Jo Mora prints along with other fine western artists. The gallery is open Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 623-1128.
‘Futzie Nutzle’ exhibit Gene Oliver Gallery, 31 Washington St., San Juan Bautista, will host the Futzie Nutzle exhibit of the 21 California missions to life in oil and pastels with their own unique lighting and color. His work has been featured in galleries throughout the country and in several publications, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Rolling Stone Magazine. The exhibit will runs through Feb. 29 and is open Fridays and Saturdays.
HOLLISTER
Christmas Light Show
Two local Hollister homes are decorated with more than 70,000 lights in sync to 29 holiday songs, at 1340 and 1350 Mesa Drive. The show runs Friday and Saturdays, from 6 to 10 p.m. and Thursday through Sunday, from 6 to 9 p.m., through Dec. 31. Visitors can tune in to 88.7 to listen to the Christmas music while watching the display. On Dec. 24, from 7 to 8 p.m., Santa Claus and Jimmy the elf will be handing out candy canes and visiting with those who stop by. A donation barrel will be set up for those who would like to donate canned goods to Emmaus House.
Menagerie of Artists
Local and visiting artists will display pieces at the Blak Sage Gallery of Fine Art, 727 San Benito St., starting this month. The gallery is open Thursday and Friday, from noon to 6 p.m., and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. For more information, call 636-9100 or e-mail ji*@bl******.com.
LOS GATOS
Festival of Lights
Vasona Lake County Park, 333 Blossom Hill Road, Los Gatos, presents the 13th annual “Festival of Lights,” through Dec. 31, from 6 to 10 p.m. nightly. Drive through a magical park of holiday lights featuring the Fantasy Train, Motorcycle Santa, the Tunnel of Lights and more. Cost is $10 per car Nov. 25 through Dec. 8; $15 per car Dec. 9 through 31; $25 for vehicles with 10 to 25 guests or $50 for commercial buses. Tours are also available. For more information call 408-355-2201 or visit
www.ParkHere.org.
SAN JOSE
Christmas in the Park
The 32nd year of “Christmas in the Park,” is open at the Plaza de Cesar Chavez on Market St., between San Fernando and San Carlos streets, in downtown San Jose. Enter a winter wonderland of lights, songs and local entertainment while strolling through an enchanted forest of trees decorated by San José schools, community groups and businesses. The event is open everyday, including Christmas, from 9 a.m. to midnight through Jan. 1, 2012. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.christmasinthepark.com.
MONTEREY
‘Avenue Q’
Paper Wing Theatre presents “Avenue Q,” on Fridays and Saturdays, through January on the Main Stage, 320 Hoffman Avenue in New Monterey. This puppet musical comedy is a spoof on Sesame Street and features mature topics and language. Tickets are $25 for general admission or $22 for students, seniors and military personnel; available at the door or online at www.PaperWingTheatreCo.com. For more information call 905-5684.
‘Art is the Next Peace’
The Alvarado Gallery in Monterey Conference Center, 1 Portola Plaza, presents “Art is the Next Peace: Connecting Communities,” an exhibit by First Night ArtWorks, now through Jan. 27, 2012. Come meet the young artists and see their images of a world without violence, music in the valley and how they see their life in Monterey County.
For more information contact Chalet Catlin, City of Monterey at 242-8743 or visit www.monterey.org/museum; Ellen Martin, First Night
January
Saturday 1/14
GILROY
Discover Abbey Road
The renowned Beatles tribute band, Abbey Road, will be performing at Nine Lives, 7430 Monterey St., Gilroy, Jan. 14 at 9 p.m. Ages 21 and over are invited to discover this award-winning, smash hit show. Tickets are $10 in advance, or $12 at the door. For more information or tickets call 408-337-1799 or visit www.ninelivesclub.com.
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