December events

 It will be another super busy December at the Hazel Green Opera House!

First up is the 

3rd annual Gingerbread House Fundraiser 

to Benefit Family Promise of Grant County 

Preregister to enter by Nov. 30 — email me at voight1970@me.com for applications.

$250 worth of prizes this year! The event will be 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8, coinciding with the Hazel Green Craft Fair. Watch for the Family Promise booth at the high school.

Stop by to view the buildings for free. Vote for your favorites with an arm’s length of tickets for $20. Bid on a building via silent and online auction. See gingerbread demonstrations and buy a gingerbread boy or girl personalized with names on the spot.

Next up: 

“Singalong Nativity”

11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday Dec. 14

2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15

11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday Dec. 21

2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22

11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday Dec. 30

This is Sandye’s absolute favorite show. It is a show we have performed many Christmas seasons for nearly 30 years. The story unfolds as we turn the pages of a giant book, from Herod’s palace, to the streets of Bethlehem, the fields nearby, the stable and the desert sands. Angels fly in from the balcony, if they don’t get stuck! Shepherds quake. Wise men place their gifts. And the animals provide a bit of comic relief. 

We call it a singalong because we noticed, a few years ago, that people often joined in on their favorite carols. So feel free to sing or not. Every audience is different. We can’t wait to see what this season will bring. Plus, you don’t want to miss the beauty of our opera house all decked out. And we will have the 2025 flyers ready to go.

Halloween shows

 We are bringing back one of our favorite shows this Halloween season:

“The Phantom of the Hazel Green Opera House”

11 am & 2 pm Sat Oct 19

2 pm Sun Oct 20

11 am & 2 pm Sat Oct 26

2 pm Sun Oct 27

Something mysterious is going on in the Hazel Green Opera House and Witch Hazel Green and her son, Frankie, are trying to figure out who is responsible. Your favorite characters are part of the fun — Hazel’s Six Dancing Sisters, Scarecrow Sally, Mr. Bones Jangle. And our beautiful historic building is sort of a character in its own right, as the drama takes you from room to room. 

Tickets are still only $5 and sold only at the door. Don’t worry. There’s plenty of room if you don’t dawdle. Doors open a half hour before each performance.

While you are here, check out the new burgundy velvet curtains that Sandye sewed for the windows in the lobby and performance hall. They are a better match for the faux painted drop-down curtain of Venice, which we will be showing off at the beginning of each show.

“River Critters”

 Celebrate spring and Mother’s Day with the show that’s been called our very best:

“River Critters”

Weekends of May 4-5 and 11-12

11 a.m. & 2 p.m. Saturdays

2 p.m. Sundays

When Buddy goes fishing with his grandpa on the Mississippi River for the first time, he has no idea what will happen when he loses his shoe in the water. Without knowing it, he’s sharing a sunny day with a playful otter and his friend, a patient turtle, as well as a heron, an eagle, a raccoon, a catfish, a frog, a duckling and even a couple of fish flies.

“River Critters” is a hand, rod and shadow puppet show.

Kids is past audiences have been known to ask us about the “tank of water” they assume is backstage!

 

March show and a summer preview

 Spring is coming and with it our first production of 2024! Our 20th season at the Hazel Green Opera House!

“3 Bears, 3 Pigs, 3 Billy Goats Gruff”

In this marionette mashup of three favorite fairy tales, Goldilocks skips along blithely past shabbily built cottages, over a troll bridge and right into a seemingly abandoned log cabin.

Showtimes are at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays

March 2-3 and 9-10

This show will also be available during the week between for school tours and other groups. 

Meanwhile, we are working on our summer library touring production of

“Fido’s Flea Circus”

This tabletop marionette show starts with an itchy dog who has not only fleas but an entire flea circus, complete with clowns, death-defying acts and exotic performers! Coming to a library near you (we hope) beginning in June. Check with your local library and ask them to book us.

Christmastime events

 There’s a lot going on at the Hazel Green Opera House and beyond this December.

Much of it has to do with gingerbread! First up: The second annual 

Gingerbread House Fundraiser for Grant County, Wis.

2-4 p.m. Saturday Dec. 2

Come and see gingerbread houses built in competition and auctioned off for charity at the end of the afternoon. It’s free, but bring your $$ for cookie concessions and tickets to vote for your favorites, as well as the auction.

On Sunday, Dec. 3, catch our booth at the Hazel Green Craft Fair, 10-3. Then,

In keeping with the gingerbread theme, we will present a brand-new Christmas production,

“The Gingerbread Chronicles”

11 am & 2 pm Saturday Dec. 9

2 pm Sunday Dec. 10

11 am & 2 pm Saturday Dec. 16

2 pm Sunday Dec. 17

11 am & 2 pm Wednesday Dec. 27

What happens when the Gingerbread Man gets mixed up with Hansel and Gretel? Here’s a clue: There’s a hungry fox, an oven, a magical cauldron, a helpful broom and a village full of people who make all the ingredients necessary for our favorite Christmas bakery.

But wait. There’s more! It all happens against a moving panorama scenery, known as a “crankie.”

Halloween Show

 After a bump on her green noggin, Witch Hazel Green finds herself off on 

                  “A Halloween Adventure” 

In the 45-minute, family-friendly show, Hazel and her little black cat make friends with a scarecrow girl, a skeleton and a cowardly cow as they travel the blacktop road to find The Big Cheese.

Performances will be 

11 am and 2 pm Saturday Oct. 21

2 pm Sunday Oct. 22

11 am and 2 pm Saturday Oct.  28

2 pm Sunday Oct. 29

Tickets are $5 per person and sold only at the door — cash or check only. Doors open a half hour before each performance.

Summertime

 We have had a wonderful spring season at the opera house, with great audiences for “Rapunzel” and “Rumpelstiltskin,” including mid-week school tours. 

Our summer will find us busy touring “Ivanushka and the Magic Horse” to area libraries. Please check with your local library to see if we are on their schedule. And if not, ask why not!

Have a great summer. When we are not “on tour,” we will be in our garden or swimming at Gov. Dodge State Park. We will also be working on our first new Christmas show in many years. It is going to be a mashup of “Hansel and Gretel” and “The Gingerbread Man,” with a working title of “The Gingerbread Chronicles.”  

It has a lot of working parts and Chuck is a little worried we won’t get it all done, but if it’s not ready for prime-time by November, we will go to Plan B (one of our other existing Christmas shows).

Stay tuned!