Merry and Bright

Regardless if the weather is frightful or delightful, yuletide fun in Oklahoma is plentiful.

Tulsa

The 14th Annual Arvest Winterfest is certainly a highlight in Tulsa, running through Jan. 3. Featuring ice skating outside the BOK Center underneath the holiday lights, Winterfest offers money saving specials including half-off skating on Mondays with a canned food donation for Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma. And on Wednesday, you can get half off by gifting a new or like-new pair of gloves, a blanket, scarf or coat to benefit Night Light Tulsa. 

It’s a quick jaunt to Broken Arrow for Rhema Bible College’s free Christmas lights display of three million bulbs, running through Jan. 2. 

For many, it’s just not Christmas without attending a Tulsa Ballet performance of The Nutcracker. This year’s blockbuster presentation, running Dec. 10-19 at the Tulsa PAC, features brand new choreography by Val Caniparoli and Ma Cong as well as new costumes and sets by Tracy Grant Lord. 

Tulsa Symphony brings The Polar Express to the PAC on Dec. 4. The stirring music and performance-capture animation of the holiday film takes you on a visual and auditory journey, featuring the skills of guest conductor Ron Spigelman.

Other community events in Tulsa include the Philbrook Festival through Dec. 31 – with lights, crafts, activities and art. And you won’t want to miss the Botanic Garden of Lights, running Thursdays-Sundays until Dec. 12 and nightly Dec. 16-Jan. 2. Lights, food trucks, music and more await at Tulsa Botanic Garden. 

Oklahoma City

OKC brims in holiday cheer, including the Lyric Theatre presentation of A Christmas Carol, running through Dec. 23 at the Harn Homestead.

For a Broadway spectacle of holiday cheer, The Christmas Show presented by the OKC Philharmonic runs Dec. 3-4 and includes star Rachel York at the Civic Center.  

Oklahoma City’s Downtown In December celebrates twenty years of holiday events and attractions in the heart of the city. Events include the Sixth Annual Lights On Broadway in Automobile Alley on Dec. 4 and 11, featuring lights and decorative displays along with pop-up shops, live music, photos with Santa and more. Also on Dec. 4, you can join the Saints Santa Run with family- and pet-friendly fun. Celebrate the season on skates at Devon Ice Rink through Jan. 30 at Myriad Botanical Gardens.

Feel the rush at LifeShare WinterFest and Snow Tubing, going strong through Dec. 31 at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. 

Stroll or drive to experience the Downtown Light Displays, where each OKC district is decked out in different displays of cheer. Curbside Chronicle’s Wrap Up Homelessness and Holiday Wreaths is held in various locations downtown, and employs individuals transitioning out of homelessness to sell the unique gift wrap packages and wreaths. 

Myriad Botanical Gardens is headquarters for Have Yourself a Myriad Little Christmas through Jan. 2, with special events and light displays throughout the season, including the Holiday mART in the Crystal Bridge Visitor Lobby. 

Don’t miss ’Tis the Season at Scissortail Park for a free concert, visits from Santa, a Menorah Lighting and much more through Jan. 1.

Running through Dec. 19, Holiday Pop-Up Shops return to midtown with iconic geodesic domes along with the market tents and shops rotating weekly.