Now that Santa has made his first visit of the season to Rockport and the Dock Square Christmas tree is lit, Christmas in Rockport is in full swing. Rockport’s Open House Weekend was kicked off in style with Thursday’s Evening of Holiday Shopping and continues through Saturday and Sunday with the Seaside Village Open House, the Holiday Gallery Stroll, and Sunday’s Open House at Rockport Inns. The weekend’s festivities feature hayrides, a gingerbread house contest, holiday craft fairs, the Scandinavian Jul Fest, and the music of Quintessential Brass.
Rockport’s shopkeepers will be featuring unique gift ideas and offering refreshments and holiday cheer all weekend long, while more than a dozen of Rockport’s finest artists and artisans will be opening up their galleries and studios as part of the ninth annual Holiday Gallery Stroll on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. The Rockport Art Association invites everyone to enjoy their continuing holiday season exhibits, including the annual ‘Masterpieces in Miniature’ show, and Sunday’s openings of both the Winter Photography Exhibition and the Remo Gaietto Solo Show.
Meanwhile, this evening, Friday, December 10 Rockport Music presents Orla Fallon at the Shalin Liu Performance Center at 8, and the a cappella group Overboard performs at the Old Sloop Coffee House at the Congregational Church, beginning at 7:30. On Saturday, December 11, Rockport Music presents the Met’s Live HD production of Verdi’s ‘Don Carlo’ at the Shalin Liu, at 12:30, while on Sunday, Rockport Music’s Cinema Series will present ‘The Nutcracker’ at 2 and ‘The Last Train Home’ at 5, both at the Shalin Liu.
Christmas in Rockport’s Open House Weekend concludes Sunday afternoon with ‘Open House at the Inns’, including tours of five Rockport inns beautifully decorated for the season. Innkeepers at the Emerson Inn by the Sea, Rockport Inn and Suites, Seven South Street Inn, Yankee Clipper Inn, and Yuletide Inn will offer tours and refreshments, as well as music of the season performed by the Rockport High School Madrigal Chorus.
For details about all of these Christmas in Rockport events and more please visit www.ChristmasinRockport.org.