Nashville holiday deals are here — free events and family fun – Tennessean
The weekend and the week after Thanksgiving is always busy, with shopping and the first round of big holiday events.
Loveless Family Friday
Loveless Cafe’s annual Family Friday will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday with free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, face painting, recipe demonstrations, music and local shopping in and around the Loveless Cafe Barn at 8400 Highway 100.
Details: www.lovelesscafe.com
All Parks Hike Day
All 56 Tennessee State Parks have an after Thanksgiving Day hike Friday, ranging from easy to strenuous, all led by park rangers.
Find a hike: www.tnstateparks.com/about/special-events/after-thanksgiving-hikes
String City
“String City: Nashville’s Tradition of Music and Puppetry,” the original puppet show chronicling the history of country music, is back for two days of performances in the Ford Theater of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. It uses marionettes, rod puppetry, shadow/animation puppetry and an ever-changing set to tell country music history as it relates to Nashville’s transformation into Music City. The all-ages program is co-presented by the Nashville Public Library’s Wishing Chair Productions and the Country Music Hall of Fame. Shows are 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
Details: countrymusichalloffame.org/deck-the-hall/
Deck the Hall
The annual Country Music Hall of Fame Deck the Hall event to light the 25-foot-tall Christmas tree with a free live performance of holiday classics featuring the McCrary Sisters is at 4:30 p.m. Friday in the museum’s Mike Curb Conservatory.
Details: countrymusichalloffame.org/deck-the-hall
Star Party
Barnard Seyfert Astronomical Society’s Star Party offers a chance to join local astronomers to look at the night sky from 6-8:30 p.m. Saturday at Long Hunter State Park. There will also be a Star Party from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Dec. 7 at Shelby Bottoms Nature Center. The star parties are free and open to all ages.
Details: www.bsasnashville.com
Community Concert Band
The Nashville Community Concert Band has a free concert of traditional and popular Christmas music at 3 p.m. Sunday at St. John’s Lutheran Church at 3159 McGavock Pike.
Lipscomb showcase
The Lipscomb University School of Music has a Commercial Music Faculty Showcase at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the Shamblin Theatre on campus. The performance will feature award-winning singer/songwriters Ashley Cleveland and Cindy Morgan, both of whom are faculty members in the School of Music.
Details: www.lipscomb.edu or 615-966-5929
Brentwood tree lighting
The Brentwood Tree Lighting will take place at 5:30 p.m. Monday at the Brentwood Library, 8109 Concord Road, with Mayor Ray Little on hand. There will be music, holiday treats and a reading of “The Polar Express” at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. The readings are free, but you must have a ticket.
Details: 615-371-0090, ext. 8380
Lighting of the Green
Lipscomb University’s 15th annual Lighting of the Green kicks off the holiday season Tuesday with Nashville entertainer Amy Grant and special guest artists including Marc Martel, Anthem Lights and choirs from Lipscomb Academy and Lipscomb University. The free festivities begin at 4 p.m., with the concert at 6 p.m. in the Allen Arena Mall on the Lipscomb campus. There are also free photos with Santa and food for sale. In case of inclement weather, activities will move inside Allen Arena.
Details: www.lipscomb.edu or 615-966-6609
Nashville Philharmonic Orchestra
Nashville Philharmonic Orchestra, an all-volunteer community orchestra, has two “Orchestral Dances” concerts that will include music by Ginastera, Prokofiev and Beethoven. The concerts are at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Apollo Middle School, 631 Richards Road, and 7 p.m. Dec. 8. at Congregation Ohabai Sholom (The Temple), 5015 Harding Pike.
Details: nashvillephilharmonic.org
Brass Band holiday concert
Brass Band of Nashville, a community brass band that plays music in the British brass band spirit, has a holiday concert that will include selections from Stan Kenton, Tchaikovsky, Handel and more at 7 p.m. Thursday , at Vine Street Christian Church, 4101 Harding Road.
Details: brassbandofnashville.org
Ag Museum open house
Tennessee Agricultural Museum’s Taste of Tennessee open house is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday with live music, baked goods, spiced cider and decorated Christmas trees. The museum is at Ellington Agricultural Center, 404 Hogan Road.
Details: www.tn.gov/agmuseum or 615-837-5197
Trevecca Christmas concert
The Trevecca University Department of Music’s Christmas concert is at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Trevecca Community Church, 335 Murfreesboro Road. Trevecca’s Christmas Choral concert, featuring the TNU Singers, Concert Choir and more is at 4 p.m. Dec. 8 at First Lutheran Church, 113 Eighth Ave. S.
Details: www.trevecca.edu
Nashville Originals
Nashville Originals, a group of about 50 local independent restaurants, has a holiday gift certificate deal, where you can buy $100 of certificates that are valid at any of the member restaurants, and get $25 free through Jan. 1.
Details: nashvilleoriginals.com/gift-certificates
Free admission to Frist
Frist Art Museum is offering free admission on Mondays in December to guests bringing nonperishable food items for Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee.
The items most needed by Second Harvest are peanut butter, canned meat, canned vegetables, canned fruit, pasta, and cereal.
Details: www.secondharvestmidtn.org
Madame Tussauds
Madame Tussauds Nashville, the music themed wax attraction at Opry Mills, is offering Tennessee residents a $10 admission deal through Jan. 5. Just show your Tennessee ID to get the discounted rate. Regular price is $19- $24 for adults.
Details: www.madametussauds.com/nashville/en/
State Park winter discounts
Enjoy a 25% discount when you stay two nights in a Tennessee State Park cabin or a night in the inns at Natchez Trace or Henry Horton parks between Dec. 1, and Feb. 29.
You can book online using the promo code COZYCABINS for cabins or “Winter Discount Promo” or you can call the parks directly and mention “Winter Discount Promo.”
Details: https://tnstateparks.com/about/promotion-details/winter-discounts?utm_
Reach Ms. Cheap at 615-259-8282 or mscheap@tennessean.com. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/mscheap, and at Tennessean.com/mscheap, and on Twitter @Ms_Cheap, and catch her every Thursday at 11 a.m. on WTVF-Channel 5’s “Talk of the Town.”
Published 6:00 AM EST Nov 27, 2019