Theater preview: Riverside Christmas Spectacular brings home the holidays
If it’s not beginning to look a lot like Christmas just yet, take a look at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts and think again.
Yesterday, the Fredericksburg entertainment staple kicked off the 2022 stint of its Christmas spectacle, which runs Wednesdays through Sundays through the end of the year.
![[Free Lance-Star] Soldier's homecoming surprises wife, son and Riverside theater audience](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f7f7eb5889cb36dd8c93bd1/1610011551628-GV9SOVB2KKGR4L0O5FPX/Army.jpg)
[Free Lance-Star] Soldier's homecoming surprises wife, son and Riverside theater audience
An Army soldier returned home from Afghanistan and surprised his family with a Christmas homecoming they will never forget. Unbeknownst to his wife Bree and their young son Ryland, Army Spc. Shawn O’Malley stepped out onto the stage of Stafford’s Riverside Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday night, with actors who were portraying different branches of the military.
![[DC Metro Theater Arts] Back by popular demand, ‘Riverside Christmas Spectacular’ sparkles](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f7f7eb5889cb36dd8c93bd1/1610011487889-220IBGFJ760KQGDGR8GO/79496875_10157963552604853_1814089650621382656_o.jpg)
[DC Metro Theater Arts] Back by popular demand, ‘Riverside Christmas Spectacular’ sparkles
Back by popular demand and refreshed for 2019, Riverside Center for the Performing Arts presents Riverside Christmas Spectacular, a variety show composed of beloved Christmas classics, with a few fun new treats as well. Director Patrick A’Hearn provides the Book for this production alongside Sherri L. Edelen, with Musical Arrangements by Paul Rawlins. Angela Donadio directs a live orchestra onstage, and they do an impeccable job with the music.
![[Free Lance-Star] The 'Riverside Christmas Spectacular' brings holiday happiness](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f7f7eb5889cb36dd8c93bd1/1610011454673-P21KFPCYUAIWU54UD5IQ/riversidechristmas001.jpg)
[Free Lance-Star] The 'Riverside Christmas Spectacular' brings holiday happiness
If you haven’t quite caught the holiday spirit yet, let’s change that. Whether you’ve been a complete Grinch up to this point or you’ve simply bottled up all of your Christmas excitement to release it after Thanksgiving, there’s a new show at Riverside to bring us all oodles of joy. The “Riverside Christmas Spectacular” kicked off Wednesday and runs through Dec. 29.
Riverside's Christmas Spectacular is guaranteed to fill your holiday with joy
Already spectacularly popular, the Riverside Center for the Performing Arts’ “Christmas Spectacular” is destined to become a favorite for holiday seasons to come.
Running now through Dec. 31, audiences are loving this variety show of Christmas classics, with echoes of Radio City’s “Christmas Spectacular” in its liveliness and verve.
'Riverside Christmas Spectacular' turns on the nostalgia this holiday season
It’s the most magical time of the year at the Riverside Center for the Performing Arts.
Snow is falling onstage; songs like “O Holy Night,” “Silent Night” and just about every other Christmas classic you can think of is ringing out; and actors are even putting on a much-shortened rendition of the holiday favorite “A Christmas Carol.”
The “Riverside Christmas Spectacular” opened Wednesday to a sold-out audience, and it continues its seasonal run through Dec. 31.