Goldilocks and the Three Musketeers | Christmas Past | Christmas Carols with a Twist | Craft workshops | Tips for a greener Christmas...
It is the most wonderful time of the year when we bring you Christmas in Colour, featuring some of our favourite ways to get into the festive spirit, including carols with a twist, mash-up comedy pantos and craft workshops. We also give you the lowdown on an exhibition exploring the history of the festive tradition and point you in the right direction for a greener Christmas. Happy reading and happy holidays!
SEE Goldilocks and The Three Musketeers, a mash-up Christmas comedy panto by Sleeping Trees, now showing at Battersea Arts Centre until the end of the month. Featuring original live music and songs and appearances from our fairy tale favourites, this old classic with a twist is a madcap festive adventure for the whole family to enjoy. The story follows Goldilocks on her journey from the woods to wonderland and her mission to save it, with the help of the three musketeers and the audience. Funny, entertaining and festive, this is a must-see from the multi-award winning comedy duo behind productions including Cinderella and the Beanstalk, and Scrooge and the Seven Dwarves.
For more information, visit https://www.bac.org.uk/ and follow @battersea_arts and @WeSleepingTrees on Twitter.
VISIT Christmas Past. This month the fabulous Museum of London will be hosting a special festive event shedding light on the fascinating history of Christmas as told through the unique objects in the museum’s collection and with the insights from expert curators. Looking at Christmas in London through the ages and delving into social, cultural and historical issues that have shaped Christmas in the capital, the event is a great chance get up close and personal with some rare and riveting artefacts while learning how Londoners have celebrated Christmas from Medieval times, right through to the political upheavals of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Christmas Past takes place on 17 December at 6pm. For tickets and more information, visit https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk. Follow @MuseumofLondon on Twitter for updates.
LISTEN to Christmas Carols with a Twist. At this time of year thousands of Londoners flock to local churches, concert halls and public squares for their annual dose of Silent Night and O Come All Ye Faithful. But if you’ve been there, done that, and got the garish Christmas knitwear, how about trying something completely different this year? This Friday head over to the Pickle Factory in Bethnal Green for a festive but different night out as disability charity Hop, Skip & Jump host an impressive brass band extravaganza, featuring jaw-dropping percussion ensemble Box 9 Drumline. Other special guests include soul singer Joseph J. Jones, vintage jazz and swing group Demodé Trio, and gospel choir Renogade Choir, with a DJ set from Afternoon Delight rounding things off nicely. So if you’re willing to forego Away in a Manger for just one year and explore a different way of getting your festive fix, snap up your tickets pronto before they sell like hot mince pies.
Christmas Carols with a Twist takes place on Friday 6 December, 7pm-1am, at the Pickle Factory in Bethnal Green. For more information and tickets visit https://www.hopskipandjumpevents.co.uk/tickets. Follow @SkipEvents and @PickleFactoryE2for updates on Twitter.
MAKE your own Christmas crackers, garlands, wreaths, greeting cards and decorations at one of the many festive craft workshops taking place this month. One of our favourites is the Christmas cracker workshop at Petersham Nurseries in Richmond led by Bath-based designer and founder of Inq, Florence Surmarez, who will guide you through the art of paper-marbling to handcraft and assemble six beautifully unique crackers, filled with bespoke messages and thoughtful gifts including a personally designed paper-weight. We also love the concept behind Andaz London’s sustainable Green Christmas Salon, an eco-friendly workshop on creating wreaths from dried flowers, making bath bobs and salts with natural ingredients, and using decorating lollipops with bio-degradable packaging. There are also plenty of calligraphy masterclasses on offer this year including the Aspinal of London Calligraphy workshop, part of a series of Christmas workshops at St James's Market, this year. You’ll learn to write beautifully to create stunning artworks, gift tags and greeting cards.
Venues, times, and booking information vary for each event. For updates, follow @PetershamN @AndazLondon and @aspinalofLondon.
READ the Friends of Earth tips on how to have a greener Christmas. With all the disposable extravagance, Christmas can be a nightmare for those trying to reduce use of plastic and general household waste. But many of us are still dreaming of a green Christmas and there are plenty of small changes you can make to avoid and limit waste over the festive period. From re-using Christmas cards, making edible decorations to giving experiences as gifts instead of objects, Friends of the Earth’s smart, safe and savvy guide is loaded with imaginative ideas that take little effort. Covering food, drink, wrapping paper, where to source a tree and even how to support the bee population in the winter months, these guilt-free suggestions are great ways to bring more Christmas cheer to the environment this year.
To read the full list of tips, visit: https://friendsoftheearth.uk/plastics/christmas-plastic-free and follow @friends_earth on Twitter.
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If you have any ideas or inspiration for The Week in Colour, please email us at hello@colourpr.com.