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The five family holiday shows you don't want to miss: Lively theater for livelychildren

Main Street Theater cast members in A Little House Christmas
Photo by Kaitlyn Walker
The Houston Symphony presents Hip Hoppin' Nutcracker
Photo by Leah Polkowske
Rhodes Elliott and artists of the Houston Ballet in The Nutcracker
Photo by © Amitava Sarkar
The A.D. Players in Sanders Family Christmas
Photo courtesy of Bara Photography
Jeffrey Bean as Ebenezer Scrooge in the Alley Theatre's A Christmas Carol: AGhost Story of Christmas
Photo by Mike McCormick
The company in the Alley Theatre's A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas
Photo by © T Charles Erickson

What is your favorite childhood memory of the holidays? Playing with cousins while waiting for Santa? Singing carols with friends at school? Sipping hot chocolate with parents while reading holiday books?

In our hearts we carry a range of remembrances from the simplest pleasures to the most lavish spectacles. This holiday season, Houston’s performance halls are offering shows that can delight the whole family and leave indelible impressions of the holiday spirit.

Here are five favorite choices:

A Little House Christmas

When: Through Dec. 22; Saturdays at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Where: Main Street Theater, Chelsea Market, 4617 Montrose Blvd., 713-524-6706, www.mainstreettheater.com

Storyline: This play is based on the cherished Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Bad weather hampers the Ingalls family’s Christmas Day celebration. Sisters Laura and Mary are disappointed that they are stranded at home and Santa may not make it after all. In this holiday classic, the girls learn the true meaning of the Christmas spirit.

"The Little House books are timeless, and A Little House Christmas is such a warm, genuine portrayal of family and friendship. It illustrates the joys and struggles of life in the early pioneer days on the prairie,” says Vivienne M. St. John, Theater for Youth’s producing director. “I think especially during the whirlwind of the holidays, A Little House Christmas helps us to refocus and appreciate the simpler things and remember what is truly important."

Length: One hour and 15 minutes with intermission

Ticket price: $12- $16; recommended for pre-kindergarten and up

A Christmas Carol – A Ghost Story of Christmas

When: Through Dec. 24, various times.

Where: Alley Theatre, 615 Texas Ave., 713-220-5700, www.alleytheatre.org  

Storyline: Three spirits visit Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas Eve — the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. This production, Michael Wilson’s adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic, offers unusual twists and spectacular sets.

“What’s interesting to me about this tale is that we meet the indifferent and miserly Scrooge," says director James Black, "and he is shown by the Spirits that, ultimately, he has little power or affect on the people in his life and the world around him.

"He wants and needs the rest of humanity to be as miserable as he is. But the people endure and find joy and happiness and love in the simplest things and in the worst of times. Conversely, as we watch Scrooge’s transformation, he is shown that the tiniest act of kindness, compassion and charity can have ripples and reverberations that change lives. Love and generosity win. Every time."

Length: One hour and 47 minutes with intermission

Ticket price: Starts at $25; recommended for general audiences, children 6 and older

Sanders Family Christmas

When: Through Dec. 31, various times.

Where: A.D. Players, 2710 W. Alabama, 713-526-2721, www.adplayers.org  

Storyline: The show spreads holiday cheer through more than 20 Christmas carols and yuletide stories. The Sanders family gathers for Christmas Eve 1941 in Mount Pleasant, N.C. It’s just before American soldiers, including a member of their own family, leave for World War II.

“The show is really all about family. Everyone can relate with at least one member of the Sanders family; the uncle who is a bit of a black sheep, the mother who embarrasses her children, the sister who has to be the center of attention,” says Sarah Cooksey, A.D. Players public relations manager.

“What makes the show even better is the great music and the chance for the families of Houston to enjoy a show together for the holidays. Sanders Family Christmas celebrates the things that mean the most in life: family, faith, and the joy that comes from experiencing them together with the people you love.”

Length: Two hours and 15 minutes including intermission

Ticket price: $32- $41

Houston Ballet’s The Nutcracker

When: Through Dec. 30, Various times

Where: Wortham Theater Center, Brown Theater, 501 Texas Avenue, 713-227-2787, www.houstonballet.org

Storyline: This is the beloved ballet with music composed by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. It tells the story of little Clara who receives a magical nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. After everyone goes to bed, she travels on a fantastic journey through the Land of Sweets, encountering the Mouse King and the Sugar Plum Fairy.

More than one million people have seen this Ben Stevenson production since its Houston Ballet premiere 25 years ago.

“In keeping with traditions, The Nutcracker signifies the start of the holidays,” says principal dancer Mireille Hassenboehler, “Seeing The Nutcracker is such a magical experience for families, from the growing Christmas tree to the snowy snow scene. What better way to elevate the holiday? The Nutcracker brings such beautiful set designs, amazing costumes, music by Tchaikovsky, and spectacular dancing.”

Length: One hour and 55 minutes with intermission

Ticket price: $25-$110, recommended for children 2 and older.

Hip Hoppin’ Nutcracker

When: Dec. 8; two shows 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.

Where: Jones Hall, presented by Houston Symphony, 713-224-7575, www.houstonsymphony.org

Storyline: Conductor Robert Franz and the Houston Symphony orchestra join forces with Westside High School’s Inertia Dance Company in this musical holiday celebration with a playful twist. Inertia is an elite performing ensemble that combines different dance elements from ballet to modern jazz to break dancing.

The concert song list includes "Suites from The Nutcracker" and "The Snow Maiden" as well as "Caribbean Sleigh Ride," "Brazilian Sleigh Bells," even the theme from The Pink Panther. Children can chime in during the Christmas Pops Sing-Along. All the wonderful holiday music may just draw Santa away from the North Pole for a break - he’s scheduled to make an appearance on stage!

Families can arrive early before the 10 a.m. concert or stay late after the 11:30 a.m. concert to participate in activities including an instrument petting zoo and arts and crafts.

Length: One hour

Ticket price: $18 for children, $26 for adults

Bernadette Verzosa is founder of ParentsPost.com, a website that covers new and exciting things for families to do in the Houston area.

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Blockbuster exhibits star in Houston's top 10 arts stories of 2025

Three Chinese Terracotta Warriors amid an archeological dig.

Photo courtesy of the Shaanxi Cultural Heritage Promotion Center

Terracotta Warriors and more than a hundred artifacts head to the HMNS this November.

Editor's note: Houstonians had lots of reasons to be excited about the arts this year, as evidenced by the 10 most-read stories of 2025. Ancient Chinese warriors came back to the Bayou City, bringing with them a history dating back more than 2,000 years. Life-sized elephant sculptures marched across the city, too, helping Houstonians learn about these remarkable creatures and the artists who made them. And an interactive new museum really lifted people's spirits.

Read on for the 10 hottest arts headlines in Houston this year:

1. China's Terracotta Warriors return to Houston Museum for fall exhibit. Visitors to the Houston Museum of Natural Science were able to get an up-close look at these life-size figures, which date to 206 BCE. They’re one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in Chinese history, unearthed in the 1970s. Presented with items from more recent digs, HMNS curator of anthropology Dr. Dirk Van Tuerenhout said the exhibit represented “a story of over two millennia with kingdoms waxing and waning.” The warriors were last in Houston in 2012 and 2009.

2. Unforgettable elephant art installation rumbles into Houston's Hermann Park. One-hundred life-size Indian elephant statues came to Hermann Park and surrounding areas like the Texas Medical Center from April 1-30. Created by the artists of The Real Elephant Collective, a community of 200 Indigenous artisans living within India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, each elephant is one-of-a-kind and based on a real-life pachyderm. “The Great Elephant Migration is more than an art installation — it is a call to action and a place to experience joy,” said Cara Lambright, president and CEO of Hermann Park Conservancy.

3. World-renowned interactive balloon art museum glides into Houston. The Balloon Museum opened November 15, emphasizing inflatable and air-based art. Think balloons, aerial installations, interactive lighting displays, and more. It showcases the work of 14 artists from around the world, and is one of several balloon museums worldwide, including in Paris. The museum is open through April 19, 2026.

4. Houston Ballet principal dancer announces retirement after 13 years. For more than a decade, Soo Youn Cho dazzled Houston audiences with her elegant artistry and technical brilliance in roles like Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, and myriad others. Her retirement came following spinal surgery to treat chronic back pain. The company’s first Korean principal, she called dancing with the Houston Ballet “one of the greatest blessings and privileges of my life.”

5. Houston Ballet names new executive director with deep ties to its past. Ballerina Sonja Kostich was on stage dancing in a commission that would pave the way for Stanton Welch to become the Houston Ballet’s artistic director. In May, Welch announced that Kostich would become the company’s executive director, with a tenure to begin in August. In addition to a dynamic career as a dancer, she also earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the Zicklin School of Business at CUNY Baruch College, graduating as salutatorian, and has a master's degree in arts administration.

6. Where to see art in Houston now: 10 exhibits and shows opening in September. Houstonians got a preview of all that was to come in the year’s ninth month. Among the shows to see were an exhibit of of bonded marble sculptures by Nigerian sculptor Ejiro Fenegal at Mitochondria Gallery; works by seven international artists at Rice’s Moody Center for the Arts that was inspired by nature and biological processes; and necklaces and brooches dating from 1976 to 2025 by internationally renowned German jewelry artist, Dorothea Prühl, that is still on display at The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston through January 3.

Photo courtesy of the Shaanxi Cultural Heritage Promotion Center

Terracotta Warriors and more than a hundred artifacts head to the HMNS this November.

7. All roads lead to Houston museum's blockbuster exhibit of Imperial Rome. “Art and Life in Imperial Rome: Trajan and His Times” showcases 160 objects of antiquity, including marble sculptures, frescoes, mosaics, delicate glass vessels, and exquisite bronze artifacts. On display at the MFAH, the exhibit transports visitors back in time to the Roman Empire. Pieces in the collection are on loan from several Italian museums. “This is truly a rare opportunity for U.S. audiences to experience spectacular objects from this glorious era of the Roman Empire,” said Gary Tinterow, director and Margaret Alkek Williams chair of the MFAH.

8. Hermann Park's always-free theater breaks ground on new Gateway Plaza. The Miller Outdoor Theatre Advisory Board broke ground on the new Gateway Plaza in November. Enhancements to the theater's welcome space include new walkways, new shade structures that replicate the theater’s distinctive, A-frame design, and an improved “Dining Boutique” with refreshed picnic tables and other improvements. Audiences will experience the changes for themselves next summer.

9. First-ever Houston Art Weeks promotes local galleries and supports mental health. Taking a cue from the popular Holiday Shopping Card, the StellaNova Foundation unveiled the inaugural Houston Art Weeks 2025 in October. The initiative was designed to support local Houston artists and provide contributions to assist Houston-area organizations that connect those in need to necessary mental health services. Shoppers could purchase works from local artists, galleries, and art events, bringing home unique items and knowing a portion of the sale would be donated to this year’s primary beneficiary, The Montrose Center.

10. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston celebrates Frida Kahlo with groundbreaking new exhibit. A pioneering exhibit organized by the MFAH, “Frida: The Making of an Icon,” traces Kahlo’s phenomenal rise onto the world art stage and her colossal influence on generations of later artists. More than 30 works in the exhibit are by Kahlo herself, which will hang amid more than 120 objects by artists from the 1970s into the 21st century who were influenced by her work. The exhibit opens in January 2026.

ParentsPost

The five family holiday shows you don't want to miss: Lively theater for livelychildren

Top arts stories of 2025

Blockbuster exhibits star in Houston's top 10 arts stories of 2025