Kalamazoo Valley Museum Offers Holiday Activities December 26 through January 4
Family performances, planetarium shows, henna demonstrations, science activities, model making workshops, and three floors of hands-on exhibits await holiday visitors to the Kalamazoo Valley Museum December 26 through January 4.
KALAMAZOO, Mich., Nov. 19, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Media Contact
Bill McElhone
Kalamazoo Valley Museum Director
269-373-7990, wgouldmcelh(at)kvcc.edu
Family performances, planetarium shows, henna demonstrations, science activities, model making workshops, and three floors of hands-on exhibits await holiday visitors to the Kalamazoo Valley Museum December 26 through January 4.
Families will be entertained and amazed by the variety of free performances available during the winter break. Visit the Theater at noon for storytellers Judy Sima and Rosie Chapman, magician John Dudley, musician Drummunity, and sand painters Ralph and Genevieve Stocker will perform.
December 27: Award-winning storyteller, author, and teaching artist Judy Sima lights up the holiday season with Hanukkah stories of miracles, menorahs, and magic dreidels. Combining folk, traditional, and modern tales with humor, song, and audience participation, her stories come alive in the hearts of all those who hear them.
December 28: Father and daughter Ralph and Genevieve Stocker first performed to a packed theater for the Museum's Storytelling Festival a few years ago. Since then, they have performed at libraries and schools in the area. These two artists create a moving series of sand paintings to music and song. Join them for a holiday sing-along as their sand drawings are projected onto the big screen.
December 31: Actress and storyteller Rosie Chapman has graced audiences in Scotland, Australia, Germany, Canada, and all over the United States. She masterfully weaves audience participation, education, and entertainment together as she shares folktales and her one-woman shows featuring dynamic characters from history. For the holiday break, she will share interactive African folktales with life lessons.
January 2: What do you get when you combine drums and a community? Drummunity! Lori Fithian has orchestrated a high-energy performance with full audience participation. Using percussion instruments from all over the world plus a variety made from recycled materials, audience members of all ages will perform together. Drummunity fosters community building and connections, appreciation of differences and diversity, rhythmic skills and coordination, spontaneity, creativity, and fun!
January 3: John Dudley, a Museum favorite, will be back entertaining audiences during winter break. John combines traditional magic with modern, fast-paced fun for audiences of all ages. Visitors may join him on stage for one of his many tricks or just watch in wonder. John was a magician in residence at Deer Forest for over 15 years, is an instructor for Camp Abracadabra at the American Museum of Magic in Marshall, Michigan, and has won many awards as well as authored several books and how-to videos.
The Museum's new Innovation Lab will be open each day with a variety of science-related activities. Join in on Tuesday, January 1, and Thursday, January 3, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. for special henna demonstrations. Henna is a plant that grows 4 to 8 feet high in hot climates. The leaves, flowers, and twigs of the plant are ground into a fine powder that contains a natural temporary dye when mixed with water. Henna is used to adorn the feet and hands for special occasions. The word henna has its origin in the Arabic word Al-Hinna. Historical records mention the use of henna on a tablet found in northwest Syria dating back to 2100 BC. Arabic henna designs often consist of large floral and vine patterns.
Visitors may want to check out the temporary exhibit case of models on the first floor, then join members of the Kalamazoo Scale Modelers to create their own. This special make-and-take invites families to sign up for a free half-hour session where a KSM mentor will work with them to put together their own scale model. Register online for a slot between 12 and 4 p.m. on either Thursday, December 27, or January 3. A variety of models will be available to choose from.
Extra planetarium shows will be available weekdays from December 26 to January 4. See Season of Light at 11 a.m., Let It Snow at 1 p.m., SpacePark 360 at 2 p.m., Mystery of the Christmas Star at 3 p.m., and Dinosaurs at Dusk at 4 p.m. Check the website for full descriptions and weekend show listings.
Children's Landscape,the exhibit area for families with children five and under, will extend open hours until 5 p.m. each day, without circle time programs. The December theme will be Dinosaurs! See Bikes: Science on Two Wheels before it closes on January 6. What We Carried: Fragments and Memories from Iraq and Syria opens December 15.
The Museum will be opening at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, January 1, and Friday, January 4.
The Kalamazoo Valley Museum is operated by Kalamazoo Valley Community College and is governed by its Board of Trustees.
SOURCE Kalamazoo Valley Museum
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