CELEBRATIONS
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Snow and Santa star
at the 19th annual
Sights and Sounds on
Second Street in Fort
Pierce too. “It has that
wonderful small town,
down-home feeling,”
said Pam Gillette, who
is serving as Main
Street Fort Pierce
coordinator for the
Dec. 2 event.
From 1 to 6 p.m.
families can play in the
snow, eat, enjoy arts and crafts, and watch a parade at 4:30
followed by lighting of the tree at the Avenue A roundabout.
Later, the thousands of lights in the waterfront park on
Melody Lane begin their synchronized dance to holiday
music and will continue each evening until New Year’s.
Switching gears to a Florida tradition, the sparkling multicolored
lights of the holiday boat parades in Martin, St. Lucie
and Indian River counties are a spectacular sight, said April
Price, public relations coordinator of the Marine Industries
Association of the Treasure Coast.
Each boat sports as many lights as creatively strung as the
owner can possibly manage. The lights are powered by
everything from batteries to inverters to generators. Some
boats are decked out with figurines, animated figures or
living tableaux.
The organization sponsors the three Treasure Coast boat
parades beginning with the Vero parade on Nov. 30, starting
at 6:30 p.m. between the bridges and ending at the city marina.
A good vantage point is Royal Palm Pointe because the
tree lighting ceremony is there at 6 p.m.
The Martin County Boat Parade winds through the St.
Lucie River at 6 p.m. on Dec. 1. South Point Anchorage and
Shepard Park and the old Roosevelt Bridge are good
viewing spots.
The St. Lucie County Boat Parade is at 6 p.m. on Dec. 8.
South Causeway Island Park is a great place for families to
watch the vessels make their way through the night.
Arare treat is in store for Nutcracker ballet lovers at the
Riverside Theatre in Vero when the St. Petersburg Classic Ballet
Theater travels all the way from Russia to perform a classic
version on Dec. 15.
“They are a first for us,” said Oscar Sales Jr., Riverside’s
marketing director. “It’s going to be an extra special night
for everyone.”
Thirty talented local children will take on roles in “The
Nutcracker,’’ said Linda Downey, education director for the
Riverside Children’s Theatre.
The Riverside Children’s Theatre is the site of the 10th
Annual Festival of Trees Nov. 10, 11, 17 and 18 at Agnes
Wahlstrom Youth Playhouse and Anne Morton Theatre, 3280
Riverside Park Drive, Vero Beach. The event features decorated
trees, seasonal wreaths, a gingerbread village, children’s
activities and a holiday boutique. The beautifully
restored Sunrise Theatre in Fort Pierce offers “Peter Pan’’ on
Dec. 6 at 7 p.m. There’s nothing like watching Peter and the
mischievous Tinker Bell, motherly Wendy and the Lost Boys,
and their battles with the evil Captain Hook on stage. For
children who have never been to the theater before, this is a
wonderful introduction.
“A Christmas Carol,” the tale of Tiny Tim and Ebenezer
Scrooge, the man whose heart finds the Christmas spirit,
unfolds its magic on the Sunrise stage Dec. 23.
Port St. Lucie’s annual tree-lighting, parade, and Festival
of Lights festivities were saved from the budget cuts after all,
and will go on as usual this year, said Larry Lankow, one the
city’s events specialists.
Hand-made ornaments will be collected for the city’s holiday
tree at 4 p.m. on Dec. 5; the tree will be ceremoniously
lighted at 6 p.m. on Dec. 6, and the holiday parade and
Festival of Lights will begin at 5:30 Dec. 8 on Veteran’s
Memorial Parkway (Midport Road), followed by fireworks,
bands, food, dancing groups, arts and crafts and rides in
Lyngate Park.
In Stuart, the Three Redneck Tenors appear at the Lyric
Theatre on Nov. 19 to 21. Loved by audiences last summer on
“America’s Got Talent,” their astonishing voices soar while
their hillbilly humor cracks up audiences. They’re bringing
their new Christmas “Spec-tac-Yule-ar” to the Lyric stage.
Children play in manufactured snow
during the Winter Carnival in Palm City.
Boating enthusiasts deck the hulls for the
annual Martin County Boat Parade.
The Christmas tree in the roundabout by the Peter P. Cobb Building is the
predominant decorating feature in downtown Fort Pierce.