If you'd rather be part of the holiday entertainment than just watch it, Verona will have plenty for you to do Dec. 4-5.
Verona's Hometown Holidays continues its usual holiday traditions - Santa on the fire truck, the tree lighting and the chili supper - with a repeat of what could become a new tradition, the Holiday Showcase.
"The Holiday Arts Showcase really took off last year," said Karl Curtis, executive director of the Verona Area Chamber of Commerce, which sponsors many of the festivities.
The hour-long charity show, which starts at 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5, grew out of the Community Arts Celebration that had been held for two years before that. It features all local talent performing in a variety show that includes a couple of sing-a-longs with the audience.
"There's almost a whole new group of artists," said Charmaine Ristow, who is organizing the show. "There will be some vocal and some musical instrumentation - a bell choir, a church choir and some semiprofessional local artists who will play piano and even ukulele and a vibraphone. It puts a little slant on the traditional Christmas tunes."
And there's also Ristow's personal pet project, the Nutcracker Suite performance by her Verona Youth Ballet.
Ristow, the owner of Hometown Dance and Fitness and one of the founders of the Madison Nutcracker that's been performing since the early 1980s, has gathered dance students of all ages for a performance of Act II, better known as the "Kingdom of the Sugar Plum Fairies."
After open auditions in September, the more than 20 dancers spent 12 weeks rehearsing an hour or more a week for the 18-minute show. Ristow not only teaches the dancers for free, she creates the costumes for the dancers, about half of whom came to her from other dance studios.
"They're primarily from Verona and the surrounding area, but there will be a couple of semiprofessional dancers," Ristow said. "We have dancers from ages 6 to over 50."
The rest of the show is music, featuring the Gospbells from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, the Memorial Baptist Choir and three local musicians, Zach Bob Green, Catie DeMets and Mike Doing. Curtis will lead a community sing of "White Christmas" during a mid-show break, and it closes with the a capella group Men of Note.
"We close with Men of Note because they're very powerful," Ristow explained. "(After they sing), they lead the finale as all the artists get together in a community sing (with) 'Jingle Bells' and 'We Wish You A Merry Christmas.'"
Ristow noted that the stage setup will be an improvement over last year, when it was compromised by a band concert that followed.
"We will have a real theater setting with curtains on the side and better lighting," she said, adding that there will be holiday decor, as well.
The show lasts just over an hour and is $5 per person or $10 per family, with all of the proceeds going to the Verona Food Pantry. Tickets are general admission, available at the door only.
The Food Pantry will also be the beneficiary of the annual Three Alarm Chili Supper at the Verona Senior Center on Friday.
The supper follows the traditional tree lighting in Central Park (featured on WISC-TV's Live at 5 with Verona resident Gary Cannalte) and Santa Claus arriving on the fire truck on Paoli Street. It features children's entertainment led by members of the Verona Area High School yearbook group, such as face-painting, arts and crafts and pictures with Santa, and there will be popcorn to go with the chili, beverage and cookies.
Anyone who isn't attending the tree lighting can head over to the supper early, as it will start at 4:30 p.m. this year. That should help keep the lines from getting so long, said senior center director Diane Lanaville.
"A lot of the seniors don't want to be out that late at night," she said.
The chili supper is all for charity, with a freewill donation benefiting the food pantry, served up by members of the Verona Fire Department. Lanaville said while the firefighters are tending the chili before supper, they'll take on a group of seniors in a Wii Bowling tournament.
Lanaville also said there will be transportation to the supper available for anyone who needs it - not just seniors. For information, call 845-7471.
