23 Holiday Shows and Performances in Philadelphia for 2025

Through Sunday, December 21, 2025 (select dates)

From the first “Bah! Humbug!” to the closing “God bless us, everyone,” you and your family will enjoy every moment of this retelling of the classic Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, back at the historic Walnut Street Theatre.

Enjoy the beloved Scrooge story, reimagined as an hour-long musical adaptation for kids that uses traditional holiday songs to highlight the magical myth of the malleable miser, timid Tiny Tim, hardworking Bob Cratchit and the three spirits tasked to change the selfish ways of a wealthy, cranky sexagenarian.

Through Sunday, December 28, 2025 (select dates)

Catch the regional premiere of playwright Katie Hamill’s fresh adaptation of Philadelphia native Louisa May Alcott’s classic tale, now with a dash of music and holiday flair.

Step into the world of the March family in Hedgerow Theatre Company’s presentation of Little Women as you follow the struggles and dreams of sisters Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth as they grow up during the Civil War.

The story of family, love and loss will tug on your heartstrings this holiday season as the actors weave music throughout the timeless tale.

Through Sunday, December 28, 2025 (select dates)

​​Just in time for the holidays comes the world premiere of Alan Muraoka’s heartwarming, family-friendly play, The Nice List at Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bucks County.

When Santa needs to leave the North Pole for important business, he puts two elves in charge of managing the list of who’s been nice. As the elves struggle mightily to decide which children make the cut, the list shrinks until it seems that Christmas might just be canceled.

Here’s hoping all the elves on shelves out there report only additions to The Nice List to Santa. Stay tuned for more info on fun promotions around Bristol to see who’s been naughty or nice.

Through Wednesday, December 31, 2025 (select dates)

It’s just not the holidays in Philly without witnessing the peckish Sugar Plum Fairy, sword-crossing Mouse King and the magical inhabitants of The Land of Sweets twirl across the stage at Ensemble Arts Philly’s Academy of Music.

See the Academy morph into an enchanting wonderland as you join the world-class dancers of the Philadelphia Ballet as they inhabit these curious characters during this traditional performance of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. The beloved holiday tradition channels the 1950s version that popularized the timeless tale in America whose Tchaikovsky original was first seen by audiences in 1892.

Through Sunday, January 4, 2026 (select dates)

The Walnut Street Theatre gets you in the holiday spirit with one of the season’s most beloved movies — now set to music! — in A Christmas Story: The Musical.

Ralphie still wants a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas despite his mom’s warnings that he’ll shoot his eye out. You’ll want to sing along as everyone’s favorite holiday movie gets the musical treatment, complete with pink bunny pajamas, triple-dog-dares and a scintillating leg lamp.

Through Sunday, January 4, 2026 (select dates)

As Buddy says, “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” Help do just that during this fun musical version of the Will Ferrell holiday film classic that tells a story of family, forgiveness, redemption and identity.

After little orphan Buddy accidentally crawls into Santa’s bag, he’s whisked away to the North Pole, where he grows up thinking he’s an elf. His cover gets blown when he grows too big and stinks at making toys, so he sets out on an epic journey to find his birth father.

Through Sunday, January 4, 2026 (select dates)

It’s the most wonderful time of the year for comedy cabaret! Montgomery County’s Act II Playhouse celebrates the season with its original show The Most Wonderful Time, featuring Tony Braithwaite and other comedy faves.

Expect to laugh your holiday heart out with a seasonal slew of improv, stand-up, songs and stories to put a smile on your face amid the holiday hustle.

Located in Ambler, vibrant and award-winning regional theater ACT II Playhouse regularly draws patrons from Philadelphia and beyond for its eclectic productions in an intimate setting.

Through Sunday, January 4, 2026 (select dates)

What would The Nutcracker look like if only one person acted out the entire thing? Find out in this reimagining of the holiday classic as Chris Davis embodies all of the characters for a jam-packed hour of holiday magic back for a third year.

Davis becomes Marie, the ballerinas, the mice and even the Mouse King, taking on about 50 different roles in total. Expect audience interaction and hilarity at this family-friendly show.

One-Man Nutcracker takes the stage on the first level of the historic Drake building, in the Proscenium Theatre.

Calling all singers! The community sing-in to Silent Night returns to the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts in 2025. What’s a sing-in? It’s a free and open sing-along with hundreds of your fellow Philadelphians (and any visiting family and friends!).

WRTI sponsors the event in the Commonwealth Plaza at the Kimmel Center, with John T. K. Search hosting and John Conahan conducting. You can download the music for all parts (tenor, bass, alto, soprano) at the Silent Night Philly website.

Grammy Award-winning group Béla Fleck & The Flecktones jazz up the holidays with their special blend of music in Jingle All the Way at the Miller Theater. The group infuses jazz, bluegrass, jazz, African music, blues and folk to create a sound like no other.

The performance marks the first time the group play their holiday tunes in more than 15 years. The same-named album, Jingle All the Way, won a Grammy in 2009 for Best Pop Instrumental Album. You’ll recognize the holiday tunes and delight in the innovative ways the group interprets them.

Classical music lovers make the annual pilgrimage to the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts each holiday season to hear the orchestra perform Handel’s Messiah.

The Philadelphia Orchestra — along with The Philadelphia Symphonic Choir and several soloists — unite on stage at the Marian Anderson Hall to offer their interpretation of the 1741 George Frideric Handel choral holiday masterwork.

Deck the halls with the Philly POPS for their annual holiday extravaganza — A Philly Holiday Spectacular — at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.

Get set for a rousing good time as the POPS perform traditional carols and popular newer tunes with Broadway vocalists Nikki Renee Daniels and Jeff Kready, the St. Thomas Gospel Choir, The Philadelphia Boys’ Choir and a special jolly visitor from up north.

This year, there are two chances to catch the show, so grab your tickets before the beloved concert tradition sells out.

The Nutcracker — but make it tap. All-female Philadelphia tap company Lady Hoofers Tap Ensemble presents this all-tap modernized version of the holiday favorite that takes over the Suzanne Roberts Theatre for four shows.

The cast of more than 40 dancers transports attendees to a rodent-infested Paris as toy soldiers guard the Eiffel Tower and hijinks ensue. Duke Ellington’s rendition of Tchaikovsky’s classic holiday score may just have guests dancing (or tapping) in their seat.

December 13-28, 2025 (select dates)

The holiday season would not be complete without at least one viewing of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Back for its seventh year at the Lantern Theater at St. Stephen’s Theater, this heartwarming adaptation tells the timeless tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation after visits with three ghosts.

The original adaptation features Anthony Lawton in a solo performance of the play. Due to the sophisticated nature of the show, the venue has requested all audience members be 11 or older.

What better way to grab dinner and a show than a cabaret? It’s Christmastime in the City at the Rittenhouse Grill features the show and a three-course prix fixe dinner that includes the restaurant’s classic prime rib. Reservations are required. Want to skip the dinner? There’s also a Backstage option, which opens 30 minutes before the 8 p.m. performance and only offers drink service.

Gospel singer Cece Winans fills The Met Philadelphia with her stellar voice this December for a Christmas concert sure to get you in the holiday spirit. Winans has won 17 Grammy awards — more than any other female gospel singer — and sold millions of records.

The mid-December performance also features a special appearance by her two younger sisters, gospel singers Angie and Debbie Winans, who often perform together.

Many of Winans’ holiday shows have already sold out — so grab your tickets while they’re still available.

In 1962, the Philadelphia Orchestra released a recording of their holiday show led by Eugene Ormandy. The album became a gold record and sparked a concert tradition that’s still going strong in 2025.

The orchestra’s annual holiday program — The Glorious Sound of Christmas — returns to Marian Anderson Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts for three shows this holiday season.

Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez will lead the orchestra with an appearance by the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia.

Dress the kids in their holiday best to join The Philadelphia Orchestra’s joyful celebration of the season created specifically for the youngest fans.

The heart-warming Children’s Holiday Spectacular at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts offers sing-alongs to all of your holiday favorites. Conductor Tristan Rais-Sherman leads the orchestra this year.

When you hear sleigh bells, keep your eyes peeled — there may just be a special visitor stopping by straight from the North Pole.

December 21, 2025 | 3 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.

’Tis the season for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra to ring in the holidays with The Ghosts of Christmas Eve coming to the Xfinity Mobile Arena for two shows on December 21, 2025.

The show has two parts. The first features a reimagining of the rock opera The Ghosts of Christmas Eve, where a girl on the run finds refuge in a theater on Christmas Eve. The second half of the show features a mix of the group’s greatest hits.

Expect lots of pyrotechnics, lasers and dazzling lights.

Saturday, December 21, 2025 | 1 p.m. & 6 p.m.

Tuba Christmas returns again this year to fill the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts’ Commonwealth Plaza with the sound of 100 tubas playing holiday tunes.

The annual tradition honors legendary tubist William J. Bell (who happened to be born on Christmas Day) in more than 200 cities around the world.

You’ll definitely feel the sounds of the season at the brass-tastic event, with two separate shows on Saturday, December 21, 2025, each featuring 100 tuba players. If you or someone you know plays tuba or euphonium, there’s still time to sign up to participate.

The stage at the Miller Theater transforms into a dazzling wonderland of circus arts with holiday flare for Cirque Dreams Holidaze this December. Watch as daring acrobats, jugglers and aerial performers astound the audience during this 90-minute Broadway-style production.

The fantastical show features plenty of holiday elements — like reindeer, sugarplums and toy soldiers — plus an original score with fresh takes on classic seasonal tunes. The family-friendly holiday tradition features new sets for 2025, with magical scenery and costumes to round out your holiday season.

For all of the children (and kids at heart!) who love Disney, the annual Disney on Ice production remains a holiday must. This year’s show – Jump In! — raises the roof with new songs and old favorites.

Witness virtuoso figure skating, thrilling stunts and high-flying acrobatics in a variety of colorful and interactive Disney worlds while popular characters like Moana and Elsa skate and dance to the high-energy beats. Sing along to newer songs from Zootopia, Inside Out 2 and Moana 2, as well as the classics from Toy Story, Frozen and Encanto.

Say goodbye to 2025 and hey to 2026 with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.

Immerse yourself in the sounds of your favorite movie scores, like the award-winning music from Oppenheimer, Encanto and The Mandalorian. Known as Hollywood’s go-to conductor, Anthony Parnther leads the orchestra for the final concert of the year.

With a 7 p.m. showtime, attendees have plenty of time to grab a New Year’s Eve dinner and see the dazzling fireworks at Penn’s Landing, all while still humming along in your head.