• CLASSICAL MUSIC

TODAY

Additional Photos

Portland Ballet Company's lushly produced "The Victorian Nutcracker" is on stage at Merrill Auditorium for two shows only on Dec. 23 – at 2 and 7:30 p.m. The show takes the classic Nutcracker story and sets it in historical Portland with sets, costumes and characters inspired by the Victoria Mansion, Hermann Kotzschmar and others. Tickets cost $17 to $47 and are available through PortTIX at www.porttix.com, by calling 842-0800 or in person at the Merrill box office. Courtesy photo

Baroquen Consort, holiday concert, Rockland Public Library. Free. 594-0310. 6:30 p.m.

FRIDAY

“Magic of Christmas,” annual holiday concert with the Portland Symphony Orchestra and guests, Merrill Auditorium, Portland. $25 to $61. 842-0800. 2 and 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday;

1 and 5 p.m. Sunday.

Chamber ME Music Series with various artists, Freeport Community Center. Free. Works by Beethoven, Rolla and Crusell, 12:30 p.m.

SATURDAY

“Christmas with Renaissance Voices,” St. Luke’s Cathedral, Portland. $15 at door; $12 in advance, $5 for students with ID. www.RenaissanceVoices.org. 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Reception follows the performance both days.

Chamber ME Music Series with various artists, River Tree Arts, Kennebunk. Free. Works by Beethoven, Rolla and Crusell, 11 a.m.

“Christmas in Buenos Aires” with the Boston String Quartet, St. David’s Church, Kennebunk. $15. 985-3073. 7 p.m.

“A Wescustago Winter” with the Wescustago Youth Chorale, Freeport Performing Arts Center. $10; $5 for students and seniors. 829-3111. 4 p.m.

Odeon Chamber Orchestra, performances by the Odeon Junior Ensemble, Odeon Youth Orchestra and Odeon Adult Orchestra, Rockport Opera House. Free. www.baychamberconcerts.org. 2:30 p.m.

Robin Jellis, cello, Local Sprouts Cooperative, Portland. Free. www.localsproutscooperative.com. 8 p.m.

SUNDAY

“A Heritage Christmas” with the Maine Music Society, First Congregational Church, South Paris. $16 to $18; $9 for students. www.mainemusicsociety.org. 4 p.m. 

• DANCE

“Nutcracker Burlesque,” spicy version of the holiday classic presented by Vivid Motion; not for children. St. Lawrence Arts Center, Portland. Sold out. www.vividmotion.org. 8 p.m. Friday to Sunday; Tuesday and Wednesday. Through Dec. 23.

Art Moves Dance, holiday dance show, Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, South Paris. $5. 743-5569. 7 p.m. Friday.

“The Nutcracker” with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra and the Robinson Ballet, University of Maine (Collins Center for the Arts), Orono. www.bangorsymphony.org. 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday. 

• THEATER

“A Christmas Carol,” annual presentation of Dickens’ classic, Portland Stage Company. $25 to $39; $12 for children under 12. 774-0465. 7 p.m. today, Friday, Tuesday and Wednesday; 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday; noon and 5 p.m. Sunday. Through Dec. 24.

“The Santaland Diaries,” one-man comedy for mature audiences, Portland Stage Company. Sold out. 774-0465. 7:30 p.m. today and Friday; 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2:30 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday.

“Home for the Holidays,” holiday songs, Christmas comedy, a tribute to the Village People, silent auction and more, Lyric Music Theater, Portland. $13. www.lyricmusictheater.org. 8 p.m. today to Saturday; 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

“The World of Sholom Aleichem,” collection of three short plays depicting life in Eastern Europe Jewish communities in the early part of the 20th century; Acorn Studios, Westbrook. $10; $8 for students and seniors. www.acorn-productions.org. 7:30 p.m. today and Saturday; 5 p.m. Sunday.

“It’s a Wonderful Life,” holiday classic based on 1947 movie, Old Port Playhouse, Portland. $15-$22. 7 p.m. today; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.

“Plaid Tidings,” holiday version of “Forever Plaid,” Bangor Opera House. 942-3333. 7 p.m. today, Tuesday and Wednesday; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday. Through Dec. 23.

“Annie,” musical about an orphaned girl who finds a new home, Waldo Theater, Waldoboro. www.thewaldo.org. 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.

“Miracle on 34th Street,” classic holiday story about a department store Santa, Schoolhouse Arts Center, Sebago Lake. $14; $12 for students and seniors. www.schoolhousearts.org. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.

“Santa’s Reindeer Revue,” children’s theater, Children’s Museum and Theatre of Maine, Portland. $8. 4 p.m. Friday to Sunday; photos with Santa before the show (2:30 to 3:30 p.m.). Reservations recommended.

“Ms. Scrooge,” Young Peoples Theater production, Theater Project, Brunswick. $6/donation. 729-8584. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.

“A Christmas Carol,” musical version of Dickens’ story, City Theater, Biddeford. $15. www.citytheater.org. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.

“A Christmas Carol,” dramatic narrative with actor Will Rhys; benefits the Lakes Environmental Association; Bridgton Academy (chapel), North Bridgton. $10; $5 ages 12 and younger. 7:30 p.m. Friday.

“A Christmas Carol,” 30-minute condensed version of Dickens’ story presented by Shoestring Theater, L.L. Bean Discovery Park, Freeport. Free. www.llbean.com. 4, 5:30 and 7 p.m. Saturday.

“The Gift of the Magi,” original musical set in 1940s Maine, Old Port Playhouse, Portland. $15 to $22. 773-0333. 2 p.m. Saturday. Through Dec. 23.

“The Velveteen Rabbit,” holiday play based on classic children’s book, Bangor Opera House. 942-3333. 4 p.m. Saturday; 7 p.m. Monday.

“Out of the Hat,” play reading series, Hammond Hall, Winter Harbor. Free. 963-7771. Audience members are welcome to participate; rehearsals are at noon. “WASSAIL: A Collection of Holiday Readings,” 7 p.m. Saturday.

“A Child’s Christmas in Wales” and “A Christmas Memory,” presented by Timepiece Theatre Company, Old Port Playhouse, Portland. $10 to $12. 773-0333. 7:30 p.m. Sunday and Monday.

“The Mad Horse Christmas Radio Show,” presented by Mad Horse Theatre Company, The Hutchins School, South Portland. $25/donation. 730-2389. 7 p.m. Monday to Wednesday. Through Dec. 23. 

• MUSEUMS

OPENINGS/RECEPTIONS

“Rackstraw Downes: Onsite Paintings, 1972-2008,” artist retrospective, Portland Museum of Art. 775-6148. Today to March 20.

CONTINUING

“Lalla Essaydi: Les Femmes du Maroc,” large-scale photographs adapted from Eugene Delacroix’s “Les Femmes d’Algiers,” Bates College (Museum of Art), Lewiston. www.bates.edu. Through Friday.

“Wally Reinhardt: Collaborations with Ovid,” paintings interpreting Ovid’s “Metamorphoses,” Bates College (Museum of Art), Lewiston. www.bates.edu. Through Friday.

“The Wyeths’ Wyeths,” paintings by N.C., Andrew and Jamie Wyeth, Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland. www.farnsworthmuseum.org. Through Tuesday.

Fall exhibit, works by Todd Watts and Ilya Askinazi and from the museum’s collection, University of Maine (Museum of Art), Bangor. 561-3350. Through Dec. 30.

“Pablo Picasso: The Passionate Print,” prints, University of Maine (Museum of Art), Bangor. 561-3350. Through Dec. 30.

“Envisioning the World: The First Printed Maps, 1472-1700,” University of Southern Maine (Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education), Portland. 780-4850. Through Dec. 30.

“False Documents and Other Illusions,” trompe l’oeil art, Portland Museum of Art. www.portlandmuseum.org. Through Jan. 2.

Fall faculty exhibit, recent work by Bevin Engman, Gary Green, Maggie Libby, Harriett Matthews, Abbott Meader, Nancy Meader, Garry Mitchell and Scott Reed, Colby College (Museum of Art), Waterville. www.colby.edu. Through Jan. 2.

“The Search for Beauty: Whistler and His Time,” drawings and paintings, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville. 859-5600. Through Jan. 2.

“The Art of December: Original Holiday Cards by Maine Artists from the Mildred Burrage Collection,” Maine Historical Society, Portland. www.mainehistory.org. Through Jan. 3.

“Sit Down! Chairs from Six Centuries,” chair collection of American and European seating furniture from circa 1500 to the present, Bowdoin College (Museum of Art), Brunswick. 725-3275. Through Jan. 16.

“Emily Schiffer: Cheyenne River,” photographs, Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland. www.farnsworthmuseum.org. Through Jan. 31.

“Cross Currents: Visual Art Distilled from the Maritime World,” Maine Maritime Museum, Bath. 443-1316. Through Feb. 6.

“Imagination Takes Shape: Canadian Inuit Art from the Robert and Judith Toll Collection,” Bowdoin College (Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum), Brunswick. Through Feb. 11.

“Currents 6,” multi-media work by Gina Siepel, Colby College (Museum of Art), Waterville. www.colby.edu. Through Feb. 13.

“Aunt Lu: The Story of Princess Watahwaso,” photographs and objects, Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor. www.abbemuseum.org. Through April 2.

“Little Elegies: The Art of Nineteenth-Century Mourning,” paintings, texts, and objects created to assuage grief and memorialize the dead, Colby College (Museum of Art), Waterville. www.colby.edu. Through April 3.

“Learning is an Ornament: The History of Kennebunk’s Schools,” replica installations, historic images and more, Brick Store Museum, Kennebunk. www.brickstoremuseum.org. Through summer 2011.

“Inspired by Buddhism: Ancient Art from the Permanent Collection,” objects from Cambodia, China, Tibet, Korea and Japan, Colby College (Museum of Art), Waterville. www.colby.edu. Through Oct. 2, 2011. 

• ART GALLERIES

OPENINGS/RECEPTIONS

R. Keith Rendall, woodcuts and etchings, Gold/Smith Gallery, Boothbay Harbor. 633-6252. Today to Dec. 31.

“Reflections: Glass, Water and Memory,” landscape images in fused stained glass by Kay McKeever Allison, Harmon’s & Barton’s Gallery, Portland. Today to Jan. 29.

Betty Overlock and Michelle Walker, new media and gourds, Bangor Public Library. www.bpl.lib.me.us. Today to Dec. 29.

Ice Walk, ice carvings created by Alpine Ice from Vermont situated throughout the L.L. Bean campus, L.L. Bean Retail Store, Freeport. www.llbean.com. Opens at 5 p.m. Friday. Through Sunday.

Holiday Art Show, Harlow Gallery, Hallowell. www.harlowgallery.org. Opening reception, 5 to 8 p.m. Friday. Through Jan. 8.

CONTINUING

“Maine’s Woods: Observations by Bert Lincoln Call and Henry David Thoreau,” photos by Call with text by Thoreau, University of Maine (Art Gallery), Machias. 255-1279. Through Friday.

“Pots and Vessels,” work by Warren MacKenzie, Sequoia Miller, Paul Heroux and Ron King, June Fitzpatrick Gallery at MECA, Portland. www.junefitzpatrickgallery.com. Through Saturday.

“Something from Nothing,” papier mache sculptures by Nanci Kahn, June Fitzpatrick Gallery, Portland. www.junefitzpatrickgallery.com. Through Saturday.

“Elizabeth Jabar: A Quiet Habitation,” prints, Susan Maasch Fine Art, Portland. www.susanmaaschfineart.com. Through Saturday.

“Whiteout,” L/A Arts Gallery 5, Lewiston. 782-7228. Through Saturday.

“Smitten: Hands and Their Coverings,” Latvian mittens by Angela Kimberk and mittens and hand coverings by other area textile artists plus photographs, prints, paintings and sculptures, Merrymeeting Arts Center, Bowdoinham. www.merrymeetingartscenter.org. Through Saturday.

“Perspectives,” pottery and oil paintings by Pamela Williamson, Jeanne O’Toole Hayman and Rick Boyd, Richard Boyd Gallery, Peaks Island. www.richardboydpottery.com. Through Sunday.

“Hold Everything,” group show and work by Alan Rushing, George Marshall Store Gallery, York. Through Sunday.

Colin Page, paintings, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay. 633-4333. Through Sunday.

Holiday member exhibit, Kittery Art Association, Kittery. 451-8384. Through Sunday.

“The Architecture of Environmental Landscapes, Within and Without,” regional artists exploring environmental themes, University of New England (Art Gallery), Portland. Through Sunday.

“Simple Complexities,” work by John Sideli, Jewel Rechsteiner and Stephen Benenson, Whitney Art Works, Portland. www.whitneyartworks.com. Through Wednesday.

“Small Works,” paintings and sculpture, Courthouse Gallery Fine Art, Ellsworth. 667-6611. Through Dec. 23.

“Addison Woolley and Friends,” group show, Addison Woolley Gallery, Portland. 450-8499. Through Dec. 23.

Elizabeth Cashin McMillen, Aucocisco Galleries, Portland. www.aucocisco.com. Through Dec. 23.

“Unique and Affordable,” holiday show, Art Space Gallery, Rockland. www.artspacemaine.com. Through Dec. 24.

“India Sojourn and a Glimpse of Venice,” photos by Lawrence Elbroch. Through Dec. 24.

“The Old Port at Night,” photos by Melanie Bennett; plus historical photography and poetry exhibit, “Look Twice: The Waponahki in Image and Verse,” University of Southern Maine (Glickman Family Library), Portland. 780-4270. Through Dec. 30.

“Mesa to Sedona to Jerome,” paintings by Francine Schrock, Sandpiper Jewelry Gallery, South Portland. 767-8090. Through Dec. 31.

“Main Streets of Waldo County,” photography, Belfast Free Library. www.belfast.lib.me.us. Through Dec. 31.

“Transport,” large-format photos of classic cars by Robert Moran, running with scissors, Portland. 479-5679. Through Dec. 31.

Jennifer Morrison, nature photography, Viles Arboretum, Augusta. www.vilesarboretum.org. Through Dec. 31.

Berri Kramer, photographs, The Frame Works, Kennebunk. theframeworks.net. Through Dec. 31.

“Artful Ornaments,” metal, clay, mixed media and more, Markings Gallery, Bath. Through Dec. 31.

Jennifer Wadsworth, oil paintings, SugarWood Gallery, Farmington. www.sugarwoodgallery.com. Through Dec. 31.

Linden O’Ryan and John Cardano, poem cards and various media, Southwest Harbor Public Library. www.swhplibrary.org. Through Dec. 31.

“Highlights from the Photography Collection of Tim Whelan,” Maine Media Gallery (Tim Whelan Photographic Books and Gallery), Rockport. www.mainemedia.edu. Through Dec. 31.

“Biennial Portland Show,” invitational exhibit, Greenhut Galleries, Portland. 772-2693. Through Dec. 31.

“Italy Inside/Out,” paintings by Brita Holmquist, Daunis Fine Jewelry, Portland. Through Dec. 31.

Holiday show, Ember Grove Gallery, Portland. EmberGrove.com. Through Dec. 31.

Nathan Macomber, glass works, Gallery 302, Bridgton. www.gallery302.org. Through Dec. 31.

“Art Noveau,” new works by Vox Photography artists, Portland Public Library (Lewis Gallery). www.voxphotographs.com. Through Dec. 31.

“A Matter of Perception: An Exhibition by Artists with Disabilities,” VSA arts of Maine Gallery, Augusta. www.vsartsmaine.org. Through Dec. 31.

“Anything Goes,” paintings, sculpture and mixed media, River Arts, Damariscotta. 563-1507. Through Dec. 31.

Winter invitational exhibit, The Gallery at Eleven Pleasant St., Brunswick. www.vsartsmaine.org. Through Dec. 31.

Roberta Goschke, still life, landscape and charcoal portraits, Waldoboro Public LIbrary. www.waldoborolibrary.org. Through Dec. 31.

“And Sew it Seams,” embroideries, art quilts and large-scale woven sculpture, Spindleworks, Brunswick. www.spindleworks.org. Through Dec. 31.

“New Work,” paintings by Paul Black, Fore Street Gallery, Portland. Through Jan. 2.

“The Way We Work,” group show, 317 Main Street, Yarmouth. www.317mainst.org. Through Jan. 7.

Faculty exhibition, Maine College of Art (Institute of Contemporary Art), Portland. www.meca.edu. Through Jan. 9.

“Women of Monhegan,” work by Francis Hynes, Kate McGloughlin, Carol Raybin, Alison Hill and Marilyn Swift and Michael Vermette, Elizabeth Moss Gallery, Falmouth. www.elizabethmossgalleries.com. Through Jan. 10.

Jason Slaughter, paintings, Waterfall Arts, Belfast. www.waterfallarts.org. Through Jan. 20.

“Katrina Chronicles, Vol. 1 and 2,” work by Peter Precourt, University of Maine (Charles Danforth Gallery), Augusta. www.uma.edu/danforth. Through Jan. 21.

“Drawing Show,” group exhibit, Caldbeck Gallery, Rockland. Through Jan. 28.

“Winter Works,” paintings and sculpture by Tom Curry, Ralf Feyl and others, plus “Eye Catchers,” small works, Gleason Fine Art, Portland. www.gleasonfineart.com. Through Jan. 29.

“Islands and Sirens,” work by Tom Curry and Brian Mark, Thos. Moser Showroom, Freeport. www.thosmoser.com. Through Jan. 31.

“Contemporary Maine Wood Sculpture,” Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, Rockport. www.woodschool.org. Through Feb. 4.

“LINES Portland: the invisible/visible lines and labor that connects us,” Katarina Weslien’s prints based on road repair lines made by Portland public service crews, Portland City Hall. www.lines.portlandmaine.gov. Through Feb. 11.

“Diagonal Knitting: A Different Slant,” sculptural work and clothing by Katharine Cobey, Maine Fiberarts, Topsham. 721-0678. Through Feb. 25.