Oakland Christmas Revels Presents A REVELS CHRISTMAS IN WALES

Oakland's beloved Christmas Revels travels to 1920's Wales and the childhood village of the great Welsh poet Dylan Thomas this holiday season with A Revels Christmas In Wales. Performances run from December 9 - 11 and 16 - 18 at the Scottish Rite Theater in Oakland. Show days and times are Fridays at 8:00 PM, Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM. Tickets are priced at $60, $45, $35 and $20. All patrons under 25 and groups of 10+ are priced at $45, $30, $20, and $10. For more information visit http://californiarevels.org/or call 510-452-9334.

There is much about Welsh culture and customs that feels familiar and comforting to Revelers. The show will evoke the spirit of family gathered around the hearth and villagers singing in the glow of the blazing yule log. Performers will venture from the warmth of the parlor for adventures out and about in the chill winter night as they follow mummers and carolers from house to house through the village. As they do, they will encounter the rich tapestry of characters that make the Welsh people so famously colorful.

As always, the children of the village are central to the visit as they embrace and reflect the traditions of old in their games, songs and dances. It wouldn't be a trip to Wales without energetic clogging, graceful couples dances, and a fierce dose of Border Morris.

There will be mummers, and Welsh Bardic storytelling - the Welsh, of course are a nation of poets - and harps, pipes and fiddles. Delighted patrons may expect a visit from a dark and mysterious ghost horse, the Mari Lwyd. As expected, all of this tuneful excitement comes studded with Revels touchstones including The Abbots Bromley Antler Dance, Sussex Mummers' Carol, and The Lord of the Dance. And there will be Dragons!

Featured performers in A Revels Christmas In Wales are Kevin Carr, who has performed in Revels dating back to 1993; Susan Rode Morris, a centerpiece of the California Revels for over two decades; and singer, Celtic harper and flutist Margaret Davis.

Order tickets at www.californiarevels.org or by calling the box office at 510-452-9334.

Parking for all 10 performances will be available at ALCO Park Garage, 1220 Jackson Street, Oakland (three blocks from the Scottish Rite Center) at a flat rate of $5.

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