Dartmouth offers holiday shopping, special events for all
December is holiday season, and right here on our doorstep there are Christmas events for everybody. Take a look.
All through December, Evergreen House (Dartmouth Heritage Museum) on Newcastle Street offers free Christmas Ornament Decorating and Gift Tag Making for all ages, using recycled materials where possible. At the same time, the museum offers a 10% gift shop sale of their unique, local gifts and stocking stuffers. Both of these events are available whenever the museum is open, up to December 23.
Evergreen House also hosts a special Christmas themed musical event, the Evergreen House Trad Night. There will be live music presented by the Helen Creighton Folklore Society, comprising balladry and songs of old. There will also be an open mic, with participants asked to choose songs from the Helen Creighton collection or similar collections. The event takes place on Friday, December 12, at 7 p.m.
The Dartmouth Players community theatre at 44 Hester St. is currently performing “O Boston Tree,” a wacky, fun-filled, laugh-a-minute holiday adventure that’s sure to leave your belly sore and your hearth warmed. This show is filled with festive spirit and outrageous surprises, and is performed live on stage until December 13.
Downtown Dartmouth is cheering on local shoppers with a free holiday shopping party on December 13 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., with carolers along the street and free cocoa at participating locations. Sidewalks are sure to be busy, and full of holiday cheer.
Some of our local churches are also putting special Christmas events (other than their traditional Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services). For example, the New Hope Baptist Church on Everette St. offers a Candle Light Service on December 14 at 6 p.m., while St. James United Church on Portland St. has a special choir concert featuring the St. James Choir and the Carillon Choir on December 14 at 2 p.m., with classic carols, festive favourites and a warm community spirit.
Recognizing that the holiday season can be a challenging time filled with mixed emotions, memories, and moments of quiet longing, Mattatal Funeral Home on 217 Portland St. is opening its doors for a Blue Christmas Service on December 17 at 7 p.m. This will be a reflective, inclusive service that offers solace, understanding, and a sense of connection for those feeling blue, overwhelmed, grieving, or simply seeking a calm space amid the busyness.
At Alderney Landing Theatre on December 19 at 7:30 p.m., a special queer choral production for the holiday season, Winter Dream: Snowglobe, is offered by “Quoir,” a 2SLGBTQIA+ community choir organized by the Chelsi Madonna School of Music. Quoir director Chelsi Madonna is the ECMA Innovator of the year 2025, and this is sure to be a fun-filled musical holiday season event.
And finally, between Christmas and New Year, the Woodside Tavern is organizing a Christmas Dance Party on December 27. And even if dancing is not your thing, I fondly remember tasting one of the Tavern’s very delicious curries on Boxing Day last year (just in case you are in need of some food while many other places are closed for the holidays).