Explore family friendly events, theatres, galleries, concerts, nightlife, things to do, and more in the Greenville, SC and Upstate areas.

Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.

Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Candlelight Christmas Evenings at Biltmore
Dec 29 @ 5:00 pm
Biltmore

Candlelight, firelight and live music bring holiday warmth to Biltmore House’s extravagant holiday décor during these nighttime tours. Candlelight Christmas Evenings include a self-guided candlelight tour of Biltmore House, next-day visit to the gardens, Antler Hill Village and Biltmore Winery. Evening guests can also take advantage of Antler Hill Village & Winery to enjoy free wine tastings.

Tickets may be purchased at www.biltmore.com or by phone (800-411-3812).

Lights Before Christmas Riverbanks Zoo + Garden
Dec 29 @ 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Riverbanks Zoo & Garden

Lights Before Christmas, presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina, will shine on select evenings. Enjoy a dazzling display of more than one-million twinkling lights, animated story tree, Jingle Bell Bonfire, and more.

Lights of Love Ronald McDonald House Charities
Dec 29 @ 5:00 pm – 9:45 pm
Ronald McDonald House

 

The Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Carolinas has decorated their house in holiday lights. It’s free to drive-through and see the display.

Be a light of hope for families staying at RMHCC this holiday season by making a gift towards the Lights of Love campaign. Your gift will be celebrated by illuminating the outside of the House in holiday lights. The festive lights will be on display starting on November 19th – January 1st. Honor your friends, relatives, teachers, and business associates by making a gift. An acknowledgement letter recognizing your kindness will be sent from RMHCC to the person you wish to honor.

 

Taco Tuesdays
Dec 29 @ 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Fireforge Crafted Beer

Taco Tuesday

 

It’s Taco Tuesday at Fireforge with Comal 864. Owner/chef Dayna Lee will fire up the grill and serve a variety of authentic Mexican tacos, quesadillas and nachos from 5:00 – 8:00 p.m.

There’s seating at the outdoor tables in the biergarden at this time. Come join them!

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad
Dec 29 @ 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Great Smoky Mountains Railroad

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2019 and we hope to see you in 2020! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 13, 2020, and operates through December 31, 2020.

 

Holiday Lights Safari 2020
Dec 29 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Hollywild Animal Park

IMG_8892%20(1)_edited.jpg

Drive through millions of sparkling Holiday Lights decorating our nearly 100 acre animal park. Snap that selfie with a zebra, camel, or one of many animals waiting to meet you. Finish your evening off with a drive through the peaceful nativity area and more lights displays before heading home.  For an additional $10 (a separate ticket or payable at the gate) you can drive through our expanded Enchanted Deer Forest where you hand-feed animals (animal food provided) from the comfort of your car.  There you can see and feed Sika and Fallow Deer, zebra, donkeys, and other gentle hoofstock.

 

Holiday Lights Safari hours:

Drive Through Open November 20th – January 2nd 6:00 – 9:00

Extended hours on the following dates:

Dec 4th, 5th (Friday, Saturday) 6:00 – 10:00

Dec 11th, 12th (Friday, Saturday) 6:00 – 10:00

Dec 18th – 23rd (Friday – Wednesday) 6:00 – 10:00

Dec 23rd – Jan 2nd 6:00-9:00

 

Open Christmas Eve, Christmas Night, New Years Eve & New Years Day!

Shadrack’s Christmas lights show
Dec 29 @ 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tryon Resort

The light show is also synchronized to music that plays on the radio station indicated at the entrance to the show.

The drive-thru light show is about 30 minutes long, and there are two ticket options for purchase which covers vehicles of up to eight people

  • Dec. 10-13: Rudolph
  • Dec. 17-20: The Grinch
  • Dec. 21-24: The Nativity
Upstate Holiday Light Show
Dec 29 @ 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Greenville Pickens Speedway

Drive through a nighttime Christmas wonderland as 32 million colors set the sky ablaze, synchronized to the music of your favorite holiday classics.

Take your time. Park and enjoy. The show lasts 30 minutes, but drive around the track as many times as you’d like!

Santa Land and Ice Skating will be closed due to COVID-19, but you can enjoy feeding animals from your car in our drive-thru Petting Zoo! We are open rain or shine, 7 days a week!

Open through December 31st (7 days a week)

Sun-Thurs 6pm-10pm
Fri & Sat 6pm-11pm

Tune radio to:

Kids Show – 92.1FM
Traditional – 104.3FM

(Includes Light Show & Petting Zoo)

GENERAL ADMISSION
Cars, Minivans, Trucks or SUVS – $30
Passenger Vans – $75
Buses – $100

FAST PASS
Rates vary. See online booking options for details.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad
Dec 29 @ 6:40 pm – 7:40 pm
Great Smoky Mountains Railroad

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2019 and we hope to see you in 2020! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 13, 2020, and operates through December 31, 2020.

Special Pre-Broadway Engagement! 1776
Dec 29 @ 7:30 pm
Peace Center

show

They knew they would make history, but not what history would make of them.

Fed up with living under the tyranny of British rule, John Adams attempts to persuade his fellow members of the Continental Congress to vote in favor of American Independence and sign the Declaration. But how much is he willing to compromise in the pursuit of freedom? And to whom does that freedom belong?

Direct from the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University, visionary director Diane Paulus (Jagged Little PillWaitressPippin) reexamines a pivotal moment in American history in a re-imagining of the Tony Award®-winning musical 1776 prior to its Broadway engagement at Roundabout Theatre Company.

Not recommended for children under 10 years of age. Parental discretion is advised.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad
Dec 29 @ 8:20 pm – 9:20 pm
Great Smoky Mountains Railroad

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2019 and we hope to see you in 2020! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 13, 2020, and operates through December 31, 2020.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s first-ever online season
Dec 30 all-day
Online w/ Brevard Music Center

Brevard Music Center Around The Web

Live-streamed performances, resources, and activities we love from around the web, updated regularly.

Alvin Ailey: Ailey Forward
Enjoy Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s first-ever online season. Available to stream from December 2-31, this incredible series of premieres, collaborations, behind-the-scenes talkbacks, and unique Alvin Ailey highlights from the past 60 years will leave you inspired and wanting more. All events are family friendly, and free to enjoy with no registration required.

Call For Art Submissions: Female Artists in grades 9 through 12
Dec 30 all-day
Online w/ Converse College

Gillian Pigg 'Coiled' Best in Show Young Women in ArtConverse College’s Department of Art and Design is accepting entries for our 2021 Young Women in Art Juried Virtual Exhibition. This will be our final farewell to the annual YWIA event. We will be taking a break as we transition to Converse University and we will be back in 2022 with a new annual juried exhibition!

All women in South Carolina in grades 9 through 12 are invited to submit entries to the exhibition. The Young Women in Art Juried Virtual Exhibition provides a venue to recognize exemplary artworks of young women in high school, to help students begin to prepare for a major in art while still in grades 9-12, and to introduce them to Converse’s Department of Art and Design and the variety of majors now offered to men and women.

Submissions close on February 14, 2021.

SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY HERE.

Artwork Featured, “Best in Show”: Gillian Pigg, Grade 9, Prismacolor and Charcoal, “Coiled”, Teacher Kirsten Kelly

LEAF 2021 announces a few key dates
Dec 30 all-day
LEAF

Spring LEAF Retreat May 13-16 at Lake Eden
LEAF Downtown/ Reimagine August 27-28
Fall LEAF Festival October 14-17 at Lake Eden 
(Size TBD*)

These events will be limited in size but will retain all the LEAF Love. LEAF Members will have priority and at times exclusive access to these events. Please note that Spring LEAF Retreat will be members-only and tickets will be made available on January 4th, 2021. Members have kept LEAF Mission alive and at work in this wild year of 2020! Your membership empowered LEAF to maintain our support of LEAF International Culture Keepers in the 10 countries and local LEAF Schools & Streets Artists. When you support culture, artists and teachers you are investing in the community and young people’s future. Interested in becoming a member? Join membership today!

All $250+ memberships will receive the 2021 LEAF Calendar hot off the press and its going to be a great year!

lighten up spartanburg!
Dec 30 all-day
Throughout city of Spartanburg

lighten up spartanburg!

36 artists + 30 sponsors + 28 fiberglass light bulbs = 300 square feet of art!

travis galloway

Lighten Up Spartanburg is a large scale public art project that bolsters the cultural vitality of downtown Spartanburg, expands the local economy through tourism, provides opportunities to local and regional artists, and fosters connections between local businesses and the arts.

Roper Mountain Science Center e-Learning Live!
Dec 30 all-day
online w/ Roper Mountain Science Center

Daniel Observatory

Join us for a virtual visit to Roper Mountain in this series of live, standards-based demonstrations specifically designed to support student learning in a virtual environment. Each quarter, multiple indicator-specific lessons aligned to the GCS pacing guide will be offered that not only provides subject-specific content, but can also assist students in practicing their inquiry skills.

To maintain proximity to the pacing guide, lessons for each grade level will change every few weeks. New lessons will be added each quarter. Teachers may register for each lesson offered for their grade level. These lessons are offered through Zoom.
Specifics include:

  • ten to fifteen-minute live demonstration by our Roper Mountain science or social studies specialist
  • reflection time to ask questions or offer comments about the activity via chat box
  • total connection time is approximately 30 minutes

*please note: teachers are required to be logged in with their students

Service For All: Integration of Public Libraries in Greenville County
Dec 30 all-day
Online

Service for All: Integration of Public Libraries in Greenville County

 

Greenville County Library System is pleased to honor the 60th anniversary of sit-ins which led to the integration of Greenville’s public libraries in September of 1960.

An expanded version of Service for All is on display at the Hughes Main Library and can be viewed during the library’s normal business hours.

–Physical exhibit at Hughes Main Library runs through Oct 1.
–Virtual exhibit on the web runs through Dec 31.

The Big Crafty Online
Dec 30 all-day
Online

Our weekend.

For the first time in more than a decade, we won’t be sharing hugs with you all, and we’re really missing it.
But we’ll still be admiring the year’s creative harvest and we hope you will, too!
Our artists have responded to the extraordinary circumstances of this year with creative zeal, and we hope you’ll enjoy checking in with them via our list of artists.
We will also be sharing some of our favorite work and gift ideas via Instagram and Facebook this weekend and throughout the holidays.
Treat yourself. Treat your fam. Know that your support is needed and appreciated.
Also…know that next year we will be hugging you extra tight.
Til then, stay well, keep your fires burning, and take extra good care of one another ❉❊❤❊❉

Upstate Food Access Interactive Map
Dec 30 all-day
Online w/ Ten at the Top
Upstate Food Access Map (created by Clemson University, United Way of South Carolina, and Ten at The Top
vegetable_basket.jpg
A lot of people are facing food insecurity, perhaps for the first time, during the COVID-19 crisis. Our new Upstate Food Access Map lists food resources across the Upstate.
Vote in The Art of Survival People’s Choice Award
Dec 30 all-day
Online

Please vote. All proceeds go to the prize pool.