Best Bets for Events in La Jolla and San Diego: Nov. 28-Dec. 4 include gingerbread gala, Celtic Christmas concert, Bird Rock holiday party, photo history exhibit

Best Bets for Events in La Jolla and San Diego: Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2019 include gingerbread gala, Celtic Christmas concert, Bird Rock holiday party, photo history exhibit

———

Gingerbread and Opera

• Kick off the holiday season with an event for the whole family. What could be more fun than building a gingerbread house together, while listening to arias from “Hansel & Gretel” by San Diego Opera singers, with a puppetry demonstration by Animal Cracker Conspiracy Puppet Co., 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019 at La Jolla Community Center, 6811 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Cost: $25 adult, $10 child. (858) 459-0831. Event includes holiday mimosas, winter hot-chocolate and cookies. A gingerbread house kit is available for every attendee. ljcommunitycenter.org

———

Family-Friendly Musical

• STAR Repertory Theatre presents “Matilda the Musical,” with a cast of 50, (including three generations of one family) Nov. 30-Dec. 8, 2019 at Lyceum Theatre in Horton Plaza, downtown San Diego. Directed by Scott Kolod, with musical direction by Benjamin Goniea and choreography by Kevin Burroughs, the story surrounds Matilda, a precocious young girl with the gift of telekinesis and love of books, who overcomes obstacles caused by her parents and school headmistress, helping her teacher and fellow students out of troubles along the way. Tickets $29 at lyceumevents.org

———

Gingerbread City Contest

• The Epilepsy Foundation will host its 26th annual Gingerbread City Gala, 6-9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2019 at Hyatt Regency La Jolla At Aventine, 3777 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla — the largest gingerbread structure competition on the West Coast. Artists and bakers will create elaborate gingerbread houses for display, with restaurants from all over San Diego offering chef tastings to the 400 guests in attendance. Honorary Gala Chairs are San Diego Padre’s pitcher Kirby and Ashlee Yates. Ashlee was recently diagnosed with epilepsy and has become a champion for the Foundation. Tickets $500 at epilepsysandiego.org

———

Celtic singer Emmet Cahill performs a Christmas concert, Dec. 6, 2019 at St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in La Jolla.

(Courtesy Photo)

Irish Tunes

• Emmet Cahill, recording artist and singer with the acclaimed Irish music show “Celtic Thunder,” will perform “Christmas in Ireland,” a concert of holiday songs and carols, as well as favorite classics from the Emerald Isle, 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6, 2019 at St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 743 Prospect St., La Jolla. Tickets $30-$45 at emmetcahill.com or at the door. Information about the church at sjbts.org

———

Don’t Tempt Fate Exhibit

• Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos — The Greek Fates — had different tasks and worked collaboratively to assign mortals their fate. Clotho spun the thread of life, Lachesis granted the length of life and Atropos ended life with her shears. The Fates also knew the past, present and future. Using computer programming, artist Nick Roth explores the concept of destiny in a 10-minute 3D animation, encouraging visitors to consider the events that make up their lives, including the unpredictability of those events and confrontations with the world. “Nick Roth: Fates” runs Nov. 30, 2019-March 1, 2020 at The San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park, San Diego. Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday; closed Wednesday. Admisssion: $8-$15. (619) 232-7931. sdmart.org

———

This image by Troi Anderson is part of the ‘Stories They Tell: A Hundred Years of Photography’ exhibit on view through Feb. 17, 2020 at Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego’s Balboa Park. Anderson’s untitled piece is described as, ‘After performing their rites, pilgrims ascend the caves at mid-day.’

(Image by Troi Anderson)

Photo History Exhibit

• “The Stories They Tell: 100 Years of Photography” is on exhibit now through Feb. 17, 2020 at Museum of Photographic Arts, 1649 El Prado in Balboa Park, San Diego. Details the history of photography through work by 33 artists. Free admission; donation requested. Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. (619) 238-7559. mopa.org

———

Bird Rock Holiday Party

• Bird Rock Community Council will host its annual Holiday Party, 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2019 at Wayfarer Bread, 5525 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Complimentary pizza and other goodies will be served. The event sponsorship will be provided by Bird Rock neighbor Michelle Dykstra and hostess Crystal White, owner of Wayfarer Bread. Join the fun, meet new neighbors and get in the holiday spirit! The BRCC is marking its 25th anniversary. It’s also time to join the Council or renew membership. The $35 for dues goes to fund multiple local activities and events and is fully tax-deductible. birdrockcc.org

———

The cast of “Cambodian Rock Band,” the Lauren Yee play that’s receiving its San Diego-area premiere at La Jolla Playhouse.

(Photo by Jenny Graham)

Theater + Rock

• The San Diego premiere of “Cambodian Rock Band,” a story about survivors, the resilient bond of family and the enduring power of music, is onstage through Dec. 15, 2019 at La Jolla Playhouse’s Potiker Theatre, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive on the UC San Diego campus, La Jolla. The Playhouse describes this theatrical production as: “This epic play/rock concert thrusts us into the life of a young woman trying to piece together her family history thirty years after her father fled Cambodia. Featuring a cast that performs a mix of contemporary Dengue Fever hits and classic Cambodian oldies, playwright and UC San Diego alum Lauren Yee brings to vivid life the Cambodian rock scene of the ‘60s and ‘70s, a movement cut short by the Khmer Rouge’s brutal attempt to erase the music (and musicians) once and for all. A story about survivors, the resilient bond of family and the enduring power of music.” Tickets from $25. (858) 550-1010, lajollaplayhouse.org

———

Something to See

• “Natale: Journey to the North Pole” runs 5 and 8 p.m., through Dec. 6, 2019 at the South Promenade, 2850 Roosevelt Road in Liberty Station in Point Loma. The circus-style big show includes acrobatic performers and dancing, animatronic polar bears. The “Holiday Village” has train rides, glacier-like climbing wall, bounce house and vendors selling holiday merchandise and food. Tickets: $29-$85. bit.ly/natalejourneytothenorthpole

———

Have a local event to share?

• Submit information about a La Jolla or San Diego-area event for possible inclusion in La Jolla Light’s weekly Best Bets listing by e-mail: editor@lajollalight.com and include a related photo, if possible.