Weekend Plans: Christmas shows, Wonder Workshop, gingerbread houses

We’re here! It’s the weekend before Christmas and we have a lot of shows, lights and festivities, though, for the most part, it’s slowing down. Be sure to check WRAL.com’s Out & About calendar and Go Ask Mom’s Holiday Central page for more activities and ideas.

Holiday light shows continue; Santa is at the malls through Christmas Eve; and some of the Santa trains are chugging along. There’s also ice skating at Winterfest in downtown Raleigh.

We have a lot of Christmas shows: Cinderella at the Raleigh Little Theatre; various versions of Nutcracker (including the Carolina Ballet’s); The Theatre in the Park’s “Christmas Carol;” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Musical” in Raleigh. Burning Coal Theatre in Raleigh also is presenting “The Wiz” through this weekend. Tickets are $15 to $25.

The N.C. Museum of Art hosts its annual free Holiday Family Fun Friday at 5:30 p.m., Friday. The west Raleigh musuem will offer M.C. Escher-inspired art making and games, music by Sandbox, free treats for the kids, and a visit from Santa. Food available for purchase, including pizza, will be available in the M. C. Escher Café.

The Holly Springs Cultural Center in Holly Springs will host a free screening of the G-rated “The Polar Express” at 10 a.m., Saturday. Concessions are available for 50 cents to $1 each. The Cary, the theater in downtown Cary, will offer several screenings of "Sing-A-Long White Christmas" on Saturday and Sunday, where you'll watch the classic movie and sing along with the songs. Tickets for that are $7.50.

The Scrap Exchange in Durham will host a performance of the Gingerbread Boy by Rags to Riches Theatre for Young Audiences at 3:30 p.m., Saturday. Tickets start at $5. After the show, enjoy gingerbread cookies and make your own gingerbread house.

Kidzu Children’s Museum in Chapel Hill has a couple of fun activities this Saturday. From 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Saturday, the museum will offer a Winter Wonder Workshop where kids can move from station to station to make holiday gifts and treats for family and friends. There will be cocoa, coffee, and full breakfast fare catered from Whole Foods. It’s all included in the ticket, which is $35 per child (which includes one adult). It’s $15 for additional adults. (Kidzu will be closed from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. for clean up). From noon to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, Kidzu also will host gingerbread house decorating workshops. This one is geared toward ages 3 to 12 and their adults. The cost is $25 per house (two kids per house).

The Dollar Book Exchange is between locations right now, but it’s having a pop-up book store through Dec. 23 at 5100 Lacy Ave. in Raleigh, off Millbrook Road between Old Wake Forest and Atlantic Avenue. All books are $1. Hours are noon to 7 p.m., Friday; 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday and Sunday; and noon to 7 p.m., Monday through Wednesday. The location happens to be in the same building as Note in the Pocket, which distributes clothing to kids in need. The sale is asking customers to bring in new and gently used jeans and sneakers of any size - toddler through teen/adult - to drop off when you shop.

At Northgate Mall in Durham, the weekly Santa’s Workshop will be offered from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Saturday. The free event will feature holiday balloon art.