HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS Upcoming AMAHL RETURNS. The PCC Music Department and Opera program presents Gian Carlo Menotti's classic, hour-long opera Amahl and The Night Visitors, about the touching sacrifice of a crippled shepherd boy to the traveling Magi, with performances at 7 p.m. Friday, December 6, and 2 p.m. Sunday, December 7, at the PCC West Campus Proscenium Theatre, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Tickets range from $4 to $8, available at Dillard's and the West Campus cashier. Call 884-6988 for information. A BABYLON TUCSON HOLIDAY. Serendipity Playhouse, 7000 E. Tanque Verde Road, presents A-AAA Babylon Tucson Holiday: The Cool Yule!, opening Thursday, December 6, and continuing with weekend performances through January 26. Tickets are $11 adults, $6 for kids 12 and under, with a $2 discount for seniors. Bring a non-perishable food item for the Community Food Band and save $1 on admission. Call 751-4445 for information and group discount rates. THE NUTCRACKER. TCC Music Hall. 260 S. Church Ave. 791-4266. Ballet Arizona, the official state ballet company, presents this holiday favorite December 12 through 15 only. Tickets range from $16 to $40, available through Dillard's. Call 1-800-638-4253 for tickets. For subscriptions, reservations and general information call the Ballet Arizona box office at 1-602-381-1096. THE NUTCRACKER. Ballet Arts Foundation presents this traditional holiday classic with evening performances at 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday, December 20 through 22, in the PCC West Campus Proscenium Theater. There will also be a 2 o'clock matinee Sunday, December 22. Tickets are $12. For information and group rates, call 623-3373. POSADA ADVENTURE. Borderlands Theatre presents A Tucson Pastorela, a light-hearted rendition of the shepherds' trek toward Bethlehem treated with Southwestern flair. Carols are sung in English and Spanish, and a piñata party follows each performance. Previews are Wednesday and Thursday, December 11 and 12, with regular performances continuing Wednesday through Sunday through December 22. Tickets range from $6 to $10 for adults, $4 for children under 12. Outlets include the West Campus cashier, Jeff's Classical Records and Antigone Books. Call 882-7406 or 884-6988 for information. A SOUTHWEST NUTCRACKER. TCC Leo Rich Theater. 260 S. Church Ave. 791-4266. Tucson Regional Ballet, a vibrant company of up-and-coming young professional dancers, presents this regional adaptation featuring the Prickly Pear Fairy, Coyote banditos and the Fort Lowell cavalry. Phil Otto and Ann Dereaux from Pacific Northwest Ballet dance the leading roles. Performances are at 7 p.m. December 6 and 7, and 2 p.m. December 7 and 8. Tickets are $11 adults, $9 for children, seniors and students. Call 886-1222 for reservations and information. Performances This Week CAROLS AND NUTCRACKERS. Southern Arizona Dance Theatre presents A Christmas Carol and A New Nutcracker Fantasy, set to the music of Tschaikovsky, with performances Friday through Sunday, December 1, at the PCC Center for the Arts, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Show time is 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with 2 o'clock matinees Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $8, $5 for children and seniors, with group discounts available. There's no reserved seating, so arrive early. Box office opens one hour before performance time. Advance tickets outlets include The Book Mark, Hear's Music, the PCC West Campus bookstore and through SADT's phone line, 881-4288. CELTIC CAROLS. Dave Shaul and James Tanguay present a holiday concert of Celtic Christmas carols and Yuletide treats at 8 p.m. Sunday, November 30, at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 4831 E. 22nd St. Program includes a variety of harps and traditional wind instruments, including the penny whistle and hornpipe, featured on the recent release Sing A Celtic Noel. Tickets are $8 in advance from Hear's Music, The Folk Shop and Piney Hollow. Admission is $10 at the door. Call 740-1851 for information. THE DICKENS. Visit merry ole England at the Quality Inn Suites' A Charles Dickens Christmas, wherein the hotel has converted its Granada Avenue locale across the street from the Chamber of Commerce into "a Charles Dickens village and costumed characters." Event features a floral shop, toy store, jeweler, haberdashery and an old-fashioned soda shop. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, November 29, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, November 30, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, December 1. Tickets are $4 adults, free for children under 12 with a can of food or new toy. Arizona Youth Theatre performs Alice in Wonderland on Sunday, November 30. For ticket and event information, call 795-8040. TUCSON SING-IN. The 20th annual community Messiah sing-in gathers at 7:30 p.m. Monday, December 2, at Grace Chapel, 6180 E. Pima St. This year, Alan Schultz will conduct the 24-piece orchestra, including harpsichord and organ, and featured soloists Beverly Gibson, Korby Myrick, Jeffry Jahn and Don Lowmiller. Admission is free. Bring your own musical score (the entire Advent portion, plus selected choruses from Parts II and III), rent one for $5 (plus a $5 deposit), or purchase one for $10. A Christmas carol warm-up begins at 7 p.m. Call 745-6054 for information. ON POINSETTIA. Tucson Shalom House is taking orders for its annual Holiday Poinsettia event, the proceeds of which will fund programs fostering independence and self-sufficiency for homeless mothers and their children. Plants are $10 each, available by calling 292-5667. SHOP AND STROLL. The Reid Park Holiday Arts and Crafts Fair brings the fun of holiday shopping outdoors with hundreds of artisans with unique, handcrafted Yuletide treasures. Food and beverage vendors will also be on hand. Fair hours are 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, November 30 and December 1, at Reid Park, 22nd Street and Country Club Road. Free parking and shuttle service will be available from the Hi Corbett Field parking lot. SANTA AT EL CON. The Sunshine Generation, a national children's performing group, announces Santa's arrival at the Center Court workshop with comedy, song and dance starting at 8:30 a.m. Friday, November 29, at El Con Mall, Broadway and Dodge Boulevard. For information, call 327-8767. SPECIAL EVENTS Events This Week A DAY WITHOUT ART. As part of the activities for A Day Without Art, the international day of action and mourning in response to the AIDS crisis, TMA is asking staff, volunteers, artists and museum visitors to use humble materials to create a tribute to the many people whose lives have been touched by the AIDS epidemic for display on the Memorial Wall Project at the Tucson Museum of Art. Please join us in this effort. For more information call 624-2333. AFRICAN HOLIDAY MARKET. Visit the Sixth Street Art Studios, 44 W. Sixth St., for a glance at unique fine art gift items and more, with proceeds benefiting the Barbea Williams Performing Company. Among the offerings are musical instruments, dance demonstrations, original centerpiece and floral ideas, clothing and hair accessories. Market continues through December 21. Call 628-7785 for hours and information. ARIZONA AIDS QUILT. The One In Ten Repertory Theatre of Tucson hosts a series of workshops for the conception and creation of panels to be displayed during the production run of Remember My Name, by David Lemos. Panels gathered will be sent to the Names Project in San Francisco, where they'll be joined to the National Quilt after opening night. Call 293-5397 for information, or if you've lost a friend or loved one and would like to create a panel in their memory. HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE. St. Philip's Plaza, Campbell Avenue and River Road, decks the courtyard with holiday lights, merchant booths, hot cider and coffee drinks and live music from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, November 29. Bring your gifts to the gift wrapping table to benefit the Arizona Children's Home. HISTORIC HOME TOURS. The Sosa-Carrillo-Fremont House Museum, a branch of the Arizona Historical Society, offers van tours of the downtown historic districts, including Barrio Historico, Armory Park, Congress Street and the El Presidio neighborhood, from 9 to 11 a.m. the fourth Friday of each month. Refreshments will be offered after the tour. Cost is $12 per person. Walking tours of the downtown historic districts are also offered at 10 a.m. Saturdays, departing from the Carrillo House, 151 S. Granada Ave., one block south of Congress St. in the TMA Historic Block. The walking tour, which includes a slide show, is $4. Reservations are required for each of these tours, which will continue through March 29. Call 622-0956 for reservations and information. KWANZAA CELEBRATION. Join in an African American "coming together" celebration featuring dancers Barbea Williams and Tariq Razool from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, December 3, at the PCC Downtown Campus. Procession begins at noon from the Community Campus lobby. Call 884-6306 for information. An East Campus Kawanzaa celebration gathers from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Friday, December 6, in the East Campus Community Room. Call 722-7666 for information. PLAZA PALOMINO FESTIVITIES. 2940 N. Swan Road. The Tucson Boys Chorus and the Old Fort Lowell Neighborhood Association team up for a holiday open house with informal caroling, a mini-concert, wreath auction, light display and holiday procession to the San Pedro Chapel. Shopping and refreshements will be plentiful. Open House hours are 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, December 1. Admission is one can of food per person for the Community Food Bank. Call 795-1177 for information. POWWOW AND CRAFT MARKET. Roadway Inn Grant Road Event Center. I-10 and Grant Road. A social powwow with drumming, gourd dancing, live music, color guard and other performances starts at noon Saturday and Sunday, November 30 and December 1. More than 50 tribes participate, with food, crafts and more. Admission is a $4 donation, plus a new, unwrapped toy. For information call 622-4900. TURKEY WALK-OFF. Join in the first annual Walk for Children Turkey Walk-Off at 8 a.m. Saturday, November 30. Course begins at Hi Corbett Field and continues for three miles around Randolph Golf Course. Pledges will benefit HEALTHSTART, a statewide community-based program promoting pre-natal care, child immunization among low-income families and community support and education for children's health. For information and sponsorship forms, call 326-4343 or 623-4718. WINGSPAN AUCTION. Wingspan, Tucson's Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Community Center, is conducting its annual silent auction through December 15. Up for grabs this year are weekend getaways, works by local artists, and much more. All are invited to stop by the center, 422 N. Fourth Ave., to view and bid. Funds raised from the auction benefit a variety of services including a 24-hour information line, support groups, a youth group, and free HIV testing. Call 571-8183 for information. WINTER STREET FAIR. Mark your calendar for the 27th annual Fourth Avenue Winter Street Fair, an eight-block shopping extravaganza, from 10 a.m. to sundown December 13 through 15 on Fourth Avenue between Congress and Speedway. Admission is free, with free parking and shuttle service on Saturday and Sunday only from the State Parking Building, 400 W. Congress St. For information call 624-5004. WORLD AIDS DAY. The ninth annual observance of World AIDS Day will be commemorated with a ceremony at 2 p.m. Sunday, December 1, at Reid Park, between the duck pond and rose garden. The ringing of the bells, comments from community leaders, AIDS activists and people living with HIV/AIDS, and the tying of 1,069 red ribbons to represent the number of reported AIDS cases in Pima County will round out the ceremony. People living with HIV/AIDS are invited to hang their own ribbon on the Tree of Hope, symbolizing the ongoing hope of living to find a cure. For information, to volunteer or to create your own tribute to a loved one lost to AIDS, contact Deborah Correa at 322-6226, Jenny Porter at 622-7107, or Robert Castrillo at 694-4209.

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