Friday
Music by Mozart, Muczynski, Brahms, Durufle and others will be presented by the UCSB Student Chamber Music players at 6 p.m. at Karl Geiringer Hall on campus. Admission is free.
Sea Shells and Sleigh Bells is the theme of the 55th annual Downtown Holiday Parade, beginning the march up State Street at 6:30 p.m., from Cota to Sola streets and sponsored by the Downtown Organization. Some 40,000 spectators will fill the sidewalks to see high-stepping marching bands, colorful floats, performance groups and, of course, the star of the event — Santa Claus. Back from last year’s parade will be giant helium balloons in animal and traditional holiday designs.
Lotte Lehmann Concert Hall at UCSB will resound with the heartening music of the UCSB Gospel Choir, at 8 p.m., in a concert called “It’s About Jesus.” Director Victor Bell and guest artist DJ Ozan will head the program of traditional and contemporary works for gospel choir. DJ Ozan is a graduate of UCSB and also the Manhattan School of Music. Tickets are $15 general, $7 students and $5 UCSB music majors, and will be available at the door.
“All in the Timing,” an evening of short comedies by David Ives, wraps up its run at Santa Barbara City College’s Jurkowitz Theatre, at 8 p.m. today and tomorrow. The show directed by Rick Mokler, will also have a Saturday matinee at the theater, which is located on the West Campus in the 800 block of Cliff Drive. For details, call 805.965.5935.
Saturday
Solvang will gear up for the holidays at Pamela’s Country Cupboard, 1525 Mission Drive. The event will run from 6 to 9 p.m. and the Lamplighter Carolers will sing at the west end of Mission Drive. For more information, call 805.688.6144.
Sunday
Santa Barbara’s traditional Parade of Lights will take “place from 3 to 7:30 p.m., with lighted Christmas decorations festooning some 35 boats as they parade past Stearns Wharf and the Breakwater. For more information about the 22nd annual parade, call 805.897.1962.
Countertenor David Daniels will sing works by Brahms, Peri, Durante, Caccini, Frescobaldi, Handel and others, at the Lobero Theatre at 8 p.m. under the auspices of CAMA. Daniels, hailed by The New York Times as “perhaps the best ever,” will be accompanied by Martin Katz at the piano. Tickets are available at the Lobero, by calling 805.963.0761, and online at www.lobero.com.
December ongoing
Ensemble Theatre’s holiday offering is “The Uneasy Chair,” a “modern take on Victorian comedy” by Evan Smith, running through Dec. 23. Guest director Dennis Lee Delaney guides the cast through a series of matchmaking and misunderstandings. Starring are Lynne Griffith, Michael Rothhaar, Matt Gottlieb, Jason Chanos and Kim Swennen. Tickets are available at the box office, 914 Santa Barbara St., by calling 805.962.8606, or online at www.ensembletheatre.com.
That Rodgers and Hammerstein perennial “The Sound of Music” plays at the Marian Theatre on the Allan Hancock College Campus, at 2 and 7 p.m. through Dec. 23. To obtain tickets, call PCPA Theaterfest at 805.922.8313 or go online to www.pcpa.org.
The Yes Store, Santa Barbara’s Christmas marketplace for original crafts and art objects for the last 39 years, is open at 530 State St., inside the S.B. Consignment Co. The staff suggests shoppers “walk down the path inside the store and find us in the Atrium,” 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, call 805.564.8969.
“Comedy Sports,” a live improvisational comedy show with two teams of comedians vying for laughs, plays every Friday at 9 p.m. and Saturday at 8 p.m. at Fess Parker’s DoubleTree Resort. The show is billed as “fast, clean, hysterical and appropriate for all audiences.” Call 805.967.4679 for more information.
Get your groove on at the weekly Dance Away, 7:30-10:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Society Parish Hall, 1535 Santa Barbara St. Open to all ages, the get-together welcomes children accompanied by an adult. There’s no smoking, no alcohol, no dress code and no partners are required. Cost is $4 for adult, $1 for children. Call 805.967.5241 for details.
“Everyday Luxury, Chinese Silks of the Oing Dynasty (1644-1911)” is the exhibition currently highlighted at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 1130 State Street. The dazzling textiles, which will be displayed through Feb. 17 will be on view through Jan. 13.