With a mix of captivating performances, immersive digital experiences and creative workshops, Wales Millennium Centre will be filled with festive fun for everyone in 2024.
From award-winning musicals to festive fun with spectacular cabaret performances and fabulous Christmas markets, Cardiff’s Wales Millennium Centre is the place to be this Christmas. Tickets for all events (except Drag Queen Story Hour UK) are on sale at www.wmc.org.uk/festive-fun.
Wales Millennium Centre’s annual Christmas cabaret show returns with a new team at the helm. NUTCRACKER (the alternative cabaret) is a queer love story and an adult twist on a Christmas classic. Based on the original fairytale The Nutcracker and The Mouse King, this immersive cabaret experience will subvert the norms and muse on the good, the bad and the beautiful in our modern world. Directed by Juliette Manon, with original live music from Sam Roberts and Heledd Watkins of HMS Morris, and deliciously dark performances from Len Blanco, Diomede, Cadbury Parfait, Rotten Peach and Daisy Williams.
If you’re looking for the perfect Christmas gift, you can browse a carefully curated selection of handmade goods and unique gifts from independent designers and artisans at the Christmas market. Hosted by indie.collectives by Annie & Lolo, this festive market is the perfect spot to find one-of-a-kind treasures while supporting local creatives. Open every weekend (excluding 30 November/1 December), 10am – 5pm.
Join Aida H Dee The Storytime Drag Queen as she takes you on a magical journey through a world of colourful characters that will make smiles wrap around faces, hilarious antics that will leave everyone in stitches, and a drag queen that just cannot remember where she placed her spare wig! Aida is a published children’s author, the first drag artist in the UK to read stories in a library and is the founder of Drag Queen Story Hour UK.
For musical lovers, get ready for All I Want for Christmas is Musicals, a glamorous night of entertainment featuring talented performers from Welsh of the West End, Siwan Henderson and Steffan Hughes, alongside Laura Dawkes, who recently starred as Anna in the West End’s Frozen, and All I Want for Christmas is Family Musicals, featuring Mared Williams (Welsh of the West End), Steffan Hughes and Laura Dawkes. They will be spreading Christmas cheer for all to hear at the Cabaret theatre, accompanied by the renowned pianist David George Harrington—who has worked with showbiz legends such as Katherine Jenkins and Kylie Minogue.
In the Donald Gordon Theatre, don’t miss the global phenomenon that is Hamilton, the Tony Award-winning musical that brings history to life with a modern twist, as it comes to Wales for the first time ever. Featuring unforgettable songs and performances, this is a must-see production that will run from November through to the New Year. Secure your tickets now and be in the room where it happens: https://www.wmc.org.uk/en/whats-on/2024/hamilton.
For those wanting to step into the world of virtual reality, Wales Millennium Centre has partnered with StoryFutures to bring Xperience to Bocs – its dedicated venue for immersive storytelling. Xperience provides multiple engaging VR experiences, covering diverse themes including music, sport and climate change and ranging from beautifully animated 360 films to full interactive immersive experiences.
In the Weston Studio, set sail on a swashbuckling adventure with Hijinx’s community theatre group, Odyssey, in Pirates of the Odyssey Inn, a charming family-friendly production inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island’. Featuring a large cast of disabled and non-disabled performers, this heart-warming family show is packed full of comedy, action and original music.
For an unconventional twist on the festive season, come along for the fifth instalment of the House of Deviant and Vaguely Artistic showcase extravaganza in Cabaret, where chaos and glitter reign! Put on your best party glad rags and dancing shoes, because rumour has it, Santa’s elves have prizes for everyone on the nice and the naughty list.
For those feeling crafty, there will also be workshops for beginners and seasoned crafters alike to crochet their own baubles and create works from clay and pottery. And Ffwrnais will be serving plenty of festive treats throughout the season.
