10 things to do in Boston this holiday weekend
BosTen is your weekly guide to not-lame events in the city.
BosTen is your weekly guide to events and cool happenings in and around Boston. Skip Netflix this weekend—here are 10 ways to get out of your home and not be bored in the city. If you’d like BosTen delivered to your inbox every Thursday, click here. Want more things to do? Check out our events calendar at boston.com/events.
Shane Black Christmas Movie Marathon
Some people love traditional holiday movies, like It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Story. Others gravitate toward films with looser ties to the holidays, like Die Hard or Gremlins. The folks running the Brattle Theatre fall squarely into the latter category, which is why they’re holding a Shane Black movie marathon leading up to Christmas. This weekend, they’re showing 35 mm film prints of the writer-director’s Yuletide-themed movies, including Lethal Weapon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Iron Man 3, and his most recent work, The Nice Guys. (Thursday, December 22 and Friday, December 23; various times; The Brattle Theatre; $8-13 per film; all ages)
Downtown Waltham Holiday Stroll
Still need to do some last-minute holiday shopping? The Downtown Waltham Partnership and Waltham Local First are giving you a chance to enjoy some last-minute caroling and last-minute gingerbread houses while you’re at it. Snap up treats from local businesses, help judge a gingerbread house contest, and take in plenty of singing. (Thursday, December 22 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.; kickoff at Embassy Park, Waltham; free; all ages)
A Byzantine Christmas
If you’ve already heard every single variation of “White Christmas” and “Jingle Bells” in existence, The Greek Institute’s seventh annual Byzantine Christmas offers something new. Featuring world musicians playing instruments rarely heard outside various regions of Greece (like the tsambouna, daouli, and Pontiaki lyra), Byzantine Christmas promises to be a culturally enriching experience. (Thursday, December 22 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.; First Church in Cambridge; $22-30 GA, $12 students; all ages)
Check Out Holiday Lights Displays
What better way to celebrate the holiday season than taking in a dazzling light display or two? We detailed some of the best places to check out holiday lights in Massachusetts earlier this month; with so many shops and restaurants closed around the holidays, now is the perfect time to act on the tips. (Various times, prices, and locations; all ages)
Ugly Sweater Photo Shoot
Behind on sending out annual holiday greeting cards? Witch Pix of Salem is offering you a chance to stage the awkward ugly sweater photos of your dreams. If you don’t have your own ugly sweater, the shop has plenty to choose from, as well as several next-level backdrops and props. (Friday, December 23 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Witch Pix of Salem; $1.99 to sit, photo prices vary; all ages)
Festivus Party
Already sick of the interminable Christmas music, saccharine-sweet Christmas specials, and general holiday cheer? Air your grievances at the Dorchester Brewing Company’s Festivus Party. In the grand tradition of Seinfeld’s Frank Costanza, there will be a Festivus Pole, and airing your grievances gets you free food from The Rib Truck, while supplies last. It’s a Festivus miracle. (Friday, December 23 from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Dorchester Brewing Company; free; 21+)
Skate with 108 at City Hall Plaza
It’s been a few weeks since Boston Winter — the open-air holiday market presented by Berkshire Bank at City Hall Plaza — first opened its doors. If you haven’t made it over to check out the holiday shopping, the pop-up bar, or the giant skating path, KISS 108 DJ Romeo will be hitting the ice in between playing the hits Friday night. (Friday, December 23 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; City Hall Plaza; $10 to skate, plus $6 for skate rentals; all ages)
JEWMONGOUS
Remember Rockapella, the a capella group that provided the soundtrack to the classic ‘90s PBS show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? Now imagine that one of the group’s founding members quit to launch a solo career writing R-rated songs riffing on Judaism. That’s the idea behind JEWMONGOUS, the musical persona of Rockapella founder Sean Altman, who will perform politically incorrect ditties like “Just Too Jew for You” and “They Tried to Kill Us (We Survived, Let’s Eat!)” to Club Passim on the first night of Hanukkah. (Saturday, December 24 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.; Club Passim; $18-20; all ages)
The Roots
It’s a lot easier to see The Roots play music these days, thanks to their gig as the house band for The Tonight Show. But hearing the group perform even one song from Things Fall Apart or Phrenology live is better than all the Classroom Instruments videos they’ve made with Jimmy Fallon combined. (Monday, December 26 at 8 p.m.; House of Blues, Boston; $62; all ages)
Star Wars Trivia
The box office numbers for Rogue One prove that Star Wars fever is alive and well almost 40 years after the release of A New Hope. If you can pull obscure bits of trivia from the back of your mind faster than the Millennium Falcon can make the jump to lightspeed, head to Bit Bar Salem on Monday for Star Wars trivia night. Bar gift cards and other prizes will be up for grabs. You don’t even have to let the Wookie win. (Monday, December 26 from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Bit Bar Salem; free; 21+)
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