Lights Before Christmas at Riverbanks Zoo & Gardens. Lively hand-crafted light displays surround the Zoo along with nearly half a million brilliant lights on trees, shrubs and buildings. Over 350 light displays, designed to imitate everything from elephants splashing and siamangs swinging, make Lights Before Christmas truly unique from other holiday lights festivals. • 803-779-8717.

Each Thunder Tower Department will decorate in the Christmas Spirit and we want you to be the Judge! Come put in your vote for the best Department decorations for a chance to WIN a Thunder Tower Shopping Spree!

The grounds of Cayce City Hall become a winter wonderland of twinkling lighted holiday displays. A unique drive-thru spectacular! • 803-794-6504.

Anyone interested in dancing can learn the popular Swing Dance style in a vintage setting this summer through next year as Historic Columbia Foundation continues to host instructional classes and dances monthly at the historic Big Apple, 1000 Hampton Street. Columbia dance favorites Richard Durlach and Breedlove plan to take dancers back to the era of the Big Apple Dance Club. Richard and Breedlove teach, perform, and research swing, ballroom and vintage dances along with studying dance culture. It was at the Big Apple club where the Big Apple dance craze began, becoming one of the most popular dances of the 20th century.

The tree at City Hall will glow for the first time this Holiday season. 803-794-6504.

City Center Partnership, Frame of Mind and other downtownmerchants are pleased to bring an exciting holiday event to Main Street. Mingle Jingle on Main A Holiday Eveningof Art, Entertainment Shopping will be held on Thursday, December 3 from 6 to 9 PM along the 1500 blockof Main Street. This event is a continuation of Frame of Mind s Art Series heldthe first Thursday of every month. The holiday event will include variousvisual and performing artists including Carolers, Sonny D and friends with thePalmetto Swing Dancers, Artist Jean Bourque, Virginia Scotchie s ceramicsculptures, Howard Hunt and the Village Artists, projected seasonal images onsome of the buildings, guided tours of the future home of the NickelodeonTheatre, a wine tasting at the White Mule and much more. Several of the downtownretailers and restaurants will stay open late for the event including GothamBagel, the White Mule, the Nickelodeon Theatre, the Columbia Museum of Art sMuseum Shop, Villa Tronco, the Sheraton Downtown Columbia Hotel, The Whig andFree Times. For more information, please contact Alicia Morgan at (803)779.4005 x 2042 or Mark Plessinger at (803) 988.1065.

Come tour the Governor's Mansion and Lace House decorated for the holidays!

Make plans to attend our Preview Party featuring The Mighty Kicks on Wednesday night, December 3 from 6:30pm until 11:00 pm. Tickets are $65 for JLC members before November 15 ($75 after November 15) and $75 for non-members. Tickets go on sale early October, which can be purchased at Headquarters or on our website.

Celebrate the Holiday season in true Five Points style this year during "Five Points Festivus" 2008. From traditional holiday cheer to fun Festivus events, the place to be on December 4 & 5, 2009! From the Airing of Grievances Tour to the Feats of Strength - Festivus 2009 will be a great event! Who else could pull off a Festivus? "It's a Festivus Miracle!"

The Cayce Historical Museum invites visitors to bring in the Holiday Season at their free open house. Live entertainment and the beautiful decorations are sure to please everyone! • 803.739.5385.

“A Christmas Carol” presented by Pine Tree Players 230 S Congress St. Call 803 635-6847 for reservations & information. Tickets $12, Senior Sun matinee only $10.

A group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggle to survive and create in New York's Lower East Side in the thriving days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of AIDS.

Museum opens 9 AM, rides 9:30. 11, 1:30, 2:30 & 4 PM. See www.scrm.org. Coach adults $10, $7 children 1-11; First class $15. No advance ticket sales or reservations.

Civil War encampments and Guided Lantern Tours offered by the City of Cayce. • 803.796.9020.

Get your picture taken with Santa on a Harley‐Davidson

With nearly 100 entries, the Carillon will feature a memorable opening presentation, high school drill teams, clowns, marching bands from across the state, dances and entertainers, local churches, vintage autos, dozens of custom floats, live animals and the children’s highlight wach year...Santa Clause!!! • 803-714-6479.

Come watch the only night time parade in South Carolina. Area businesses, church groups, dance studios and civic groups join together in a march of dazzling lights, music, dancing, singing and fun. • 803-794-6504.

The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, starring the world famous Rockettes will appear at the Colonial Life Arena for the FIRST TIME EVER. This beloved holiday show will delight the entire family when it hits the stage in Columbia on December 6, 2009. The Arena production was specifically designed for large-scale venues and replicates the grandeur of the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall on an entirely different scale. Audiences are taken on a theatrical journey that the entire family can enjoy together. Children thrill as Santa takes the audience on a magical sleigh ride to the North Pole, while parents marvel at the unparalleled precision dance of the Rockettes. The Christmas Spectacular is truly unique in its universal appeal to people of all ages. From small children to grandparents, this dazzling holiday production is guaranteed to bring smiles to their faces and help create a wonderful family memory to last a lifetime.

“A Christmas Carol” presented by Pine Tree Players 230 S Congress St. Call 803 635-6847 for reservations & information. Tickets $12, Senior Sun matinee only $10.

Columbia City Ballet’s holiday family tradition, Nutcracker, dazzles South Carolina audiences each season. Collecting the talents of more than 200 local children and 40 professional dancers, this award-winning Nutcracker has been proclaimed by The State newspaper “as close to perfect as you can get.” Koger Center • 803.251.2222.

Museum opens 9 AM, rides 9:30. 11, 1:30, 2:30 & 4 PM. See www.scrm.org. Coach adults $10, $7 children 1-11; First class $15. No advance ticket sales or reservations.

Take a break from the holiday crowds with family activities celebrating the winter season. SC State Museum • 803.898.4921.

Columbia City Ballet’s holiday family tradition, Nutcracker, dazzles South Carolina audiences each season. Collecting the talents of more than 200 local children and 40 professional dancers, this award-winning Nutcracker has been proclaimed by The State newspaper “as close to perfect as you can get.” Koger Center • 803.251.2222.

Make time during the hectic holiday season to experience our annual tradition marking the shortest day of the year with a fire, warm drinks and tales of times past. Come prepared to toss mementos of last year’s unpleasantness into the flames, and resolve to enter the coming year renewed in spirit. From this day forward until June, the sun sets just a little later. Cheer it along in good company. Use the Laurel Street park entrance at Huger Street