Rachel Bowen’s If I’d Known: Selections for December in Palmerston North

Ben Hurley is in Palmy on December 16. The stand-up show also features Alex Neil, Aunty Lianne, Morgan Hunter-Bell, and MC Alexander Sparrow. Photo / Natalie Slade

Christmas? I’m surprised every year when it sneaks up on me, but that might be my English roots showing. I’m more focused on summer being nearly upon us, and I’m definitely ready for some warmer weather and outdoor events. This is perfect timing, as the first weekend of December is A Very Palmy Christmas.

On Saturday from 5pm–9pm, we’ll have our annual Christmas concert in Te Marae o Hine - The Square. This is one for the whole family! Kids will enjoy the merry-go-round, bouncy castle, and outdoor games, and will have the chance to be part of the Christmas fashion/dance show. The evening will wrap up with the lighting of the big Christmas tree at 9pm to officially kickstart the festive season.

On Sunday, the Christmas Parade is back in town. With activities in The Square from 1pm–4pm, the parade itself begins at 2pm, leaving from the corner of Church and Pitt streets, going up Church St and around The Square, before making its way south down Main St. Our city centre will be buzzing with Christmas spirit, so come and join the hundreds of people who participate in this annual event.

If you’re feeling suitably festive - or maybe especially if you’re not - there is the usual great selection of theatre offerings that often go under the radar in the busy run-up to Christmas. It’s like a box of Favourites – bound to be something for everyone, even if no-one wants the Cherry Ripe.

There’s Mixed Nuts with Lola and Friends at Globe Theatre, a Christmas cabaret of biblical proportions from December 8-10.

SpontaneoUS bring you their season of improvised Christmas Calamity with six shows from December 1-17 at The Dark Room. And the Centrepoint season of The Opening Night Before Christmas continues until December 17 – perfect timing for a work Christmas outing, and worth seeing more than once as the mystery guest (a selection of local and national names) changes for every show, with some big names still to come.

If music is more your thing for getting in the Christmas swing, then Unity Singers have their choral celebration of the themes of Christmas, old and new, at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit on December 5 and 6 from 7pm. Entry is by donation, or bring an item of non-perishable food for the St Vincent de Paul Foodbank.

Or, you could check out the Renaissance Singers at St Peter’s Church on December 10, 3pm, with their Carols for Christmas. Alternatively, I can offer the annual pre-Christmas pipe band blowout that is Jenny Mair Square Day, held in The Square from 8.30am on December 10. The day features bagpipe and drum solos, performed by people with skills ranging from the novice level to A-grade, and the free-to-watch event attracts some of New Zealand’s best musicians. You can continue to celebrate any Celtic heritage with the all-singing, all-dancing, family-friendly treat, A Celtic Christmas by A Taste of Ireland, on stage at Regent on Broadway that night.

Finally, if all this is way too much Christmas for you, I can suggest the Comedy Hub’s Big Monthly Stand-Up Show, this month featuring Ben Hurley. From The Project to 7 Days, Ben is no stranger to your TV screen, and during his stand-up career he’s also picked up two of the most prestigious awards in New Zealand comedy. You can see him at Globe Theatre on December 16 at 8pm.

We’ve had a selection of out-of-town visitors over the past few weeks. That’s always a great opportunity to play tourist in my own town, and I was reminded again of how much there is to do – if only you know!

• Rachel Bowen is an arts enthusiast, sometime actor and, as a Palmerston North city councillor, chairwoman of the council’s Culture and Sport Committee. The views expressed here are her own.