East Valley View things to do for Dec. 25-31, 2014

IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

• Several special skating sessions are scheduled at Boulder Crystal Palace Skating Center, 4680 Boulder Highway, during school vacation. Through Jan. 3, all-day skates are scheduled weekdays. Admission is $9 or $10 with skate rental and includes two slices of pizza, a small soft drink and four video game tokens. Visit skatevegas.com/boulder or call 702-458-7107.
• Master of ceremonies Keith Brantley is set to celebrate the meaning of Kwanzaa and the accomplishments of youth graduate participants in the annual Rites of Passage mentoring workshops during a free Kwanzaa 2014 event scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 27 at the West Las Vegas Library, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd. The schedule is set to include vendors, a yoga class, a community musical and a spoken-word tribute. Visit lvccld.org or call 702-507-3989.
• Performances of “Two Trains Running,” by playwright August Wilson, produced by the Ira Aldridge Theatre Company, are scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 27 and from 3 to 5 p.m. Dec. 28 at the West Las Vegas Library, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd. Admission is free. Visit lvccld.org or call 702-507-3989.
• The Human Experience, a weekly open mic event, is scheduled from 7 p.m. to midnight Dec. 29 at The Beat Coffeehouse, 520 Fremont St. Sign-ups for the event are set to begin at 6:30 p.m., and attendees must be 21 or older. Visit thebeatlv.com or call 702-385-2328.
• In celebration of its 22nd anniversary, the Las Vegas House of Blues is looking to host 22 charitable events in the Foundation Room December through January. Events are slated to run from 5 to 8 p.m. and are open to the public, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the corresponding charity. Guests must be 21 or older, and dress codes are enforced. For a list of charities and dates, visit tinyurl.com/hobanniversary.
• Beatles Tribute Night is scheduled from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. Dec. 26 at the Bunkhouse, 124 S. 11th St. Doors are slated to open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5. Visit bunkhousedowntown.com or call 702-854-1414.
• Hard Candy is scheduled to perform at 10 p.m. Dec. 27 at the Gold Spike, 217 Las Vegas Blvd. North. Visit goldspike.com or call 702 476-1082.

HOLIDAY EVENTS AND ATTRACTIONS

• Winter Wonderland, an outdoor experience with a snow play area, sledding, ice skating, a movie and light show, a tree sales lot and a Zappos Pop Up Shop, is scheduled from 3 to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 11 a.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays and 11 to 10 p.m. Sundays at Eighth and Fremont streets throughout December. Admission to the area is free. Free parking is available in the Llama Lot at Ninth and Fremont streets. Ice skating is $5. Snow play is $10 an hour. Sliding down the sledding hill is $12 for five rides. Visit givewithme.com.
• The Ice Rink at the Boulevard Pool is scheduled to be open through Jan. 4 at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, 3708 Las Vegas Blvd. South. The 4,200-square-foot rink is set to feature a fire with s’mores roasting, periodic snowfall on the weekends and holiday movies on Mondays. The rink is scheduled to be open from 3 p.m. to midnight Mondays through Fridays and noon to midnight Saturdays and Sundays. All-day skating is $10 for Nevada residents and $15 for nonresidents. Skate rentals are $5. Admission is free to the pool area, which features a winter atmosphere. The Ice Rink is open to children 2 or older, but children 16 or younger must be accompanied by an adult. Visit cosmopolitanlasvegas.com.
• “A Christmas Carol: Read by Charles Dickens” is scheduled at 8 p.m. Dec. 26 and 27 and 2 p.m. Dec. 28 at the Onyx Theatre, 953-16B E. Sahara Ave. Actor Byron Tidwell is set to perform a one-man show using Dickens’ performance notes. Visit onyxtheatre.com or call 702-732-7225.
• A free large-scale model train exhibit is set to be decorated for the holidays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. through Jan. 3 at the Las Vegas Garden Railway Society, 8555 W. Centennial Parkway. The trains will shut down at 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve and will not be running on Christmas Day, Dec. 28 and New Year’s Day. Admission is free. Visit lvgrs.org.
• The Magical Forest at Opportunity Village, 6300 W. Oakey Blvd., is slated from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 5:30 to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Jan. 4. General admission is $11 for adults and $9 for children. Visit opportunityvillage.org/magical-forest or call 702-259-3700.
• Ethel M Chocolates, 2 Cactus Garden Drive, plans to host its 21st annual holiday cactus garden through Jan. 1. The garden is set to open from 5 to 10 p.m. daily. Admission is free. Visit ethelm.com.
• Downtown Summerlin, 1980 Festival Plaza Drive, plans to operate its outdoor ice skating rink, the Rock Rink, through mid-January from 4 to 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 4 to 10 p.m. Fridays; 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturdays; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays; and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. school holidays. Holiday hours are set from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Dec. 31 and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Jan. 1. The rink will be closed Dec. 25. Skating is $15, including skate rental. The rink is on the northwest side of Downtown Summerlin off Rosemary Park Drive and Summa Drive. Call 702-832-1000 or visit downtownsummerlin.com.
• Glittering Lights, the annual drive-through holiday display, is scheduled through Jan. 4 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 7000 Las Vegas Blvd. North. The attraction features hundreds of light displays stretched over a 2.5-mile course and is open from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 5:30 to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Admission is $20 per car. Visitors may receive $5 off Sundays through Thursdays with the donation of a bag of gently used items for Goodwill of Southern Nevada. Visit glitteringlightslasvegas.com.
• Mystic Falls Park at Sam’s Town, 5111 Boulder Highway, is transformed annually with holiday decorations and an hourly 15-minute laser light spectacular set from 5 to 10 p.m. through Jan. 1. Visit samstownlv.com, or call 702-636-7075.

WORTH A DRIVE

• The exhibit “Vegas Votes” by the Las Vegas News Bureau Archives is planned through Feb. 3 at the Sahara West Library, 9600 W. Sahara Ave. The public is invited to vote for their favorite photographs to be featured in a 2015 exhibition at The Studio. Visit lvccld.org.
• “A Master’s Journey,” featuring paintings by Lolita Develay, is set to be on display through Jan. 31 at the Left of Center Gallery, 2207 W. Gowan Road. Visit leftofcenterart.org.
• The Theatre in the Valley Playhouse, 10 W. Pacific Ave., plans to perform “The Magic Toy Box” at 2, 3:30 and 6 p.m. Dec. 27 and 28. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children 4 to 14 and $8 for students, active-duty military members or seniors 60 or older. Reservations are recommended. Visit hendersonlive.com or call 702-558-7275.
• Louis Prima Jr. and the Witness are set to perform a free show at 8 p.m. Dec. 30 at Red Rock Resort, 11011 W. Charleston Blvd. Doors are set to open at 7 p.m. There is no cover charge, but guests must be 21 or older. Entry is on a first-come, first-served basis and based upon venue capacity. Visit sclv.com/concerts.

ONGOING EVENTS AND EXHIBITS

• Sculptures in metal by DC Trilby Sr. are set to be on display through Feb. 24 at the Whitney Library, 5175 E. Tropicana Ave. Visit lvccld.org or call 702-507-4010.
• “Line in the Sand: The People, Power and Progress of the Culinary Union,” a student-curated exhibit created by UNLV’s Public History Program, is set to be on display through April 1 on the first floor of the Lied Library, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway. Visit unlvpublichistory.com.
• “Reflecting and Projecting: Twenty Years of Design Excellence,” an exhibit celebrating architecture produced by architects in Nevada, is set to be on display through Feb. 28 inside the Marjorie Barrick Museum at UNLV, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway. Visit pac.unlv.edu or call 702-895-2787.
• A group art exhibition in honor of Chinese New Year: Year of the Goat is scheduled to be on display through Feb. 21 by appointment at the Historic Fifth Street School, 401 S. Fourth St. An artists reception is scheduled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Feb. 19. Visit artslasvegas.org, or call 702-229-1012.
• Gig De Pio’s “A Brief History,” an exhibit that includes several large-scale impasto paintings, is set to be on display through Jan. 9 in the Winchester Cultural Center art gallery, 3130 McLeod Drive. Visit clarkcountynv.gov.
• “Surrealist Expressionist in Fine Art,” an exhibition by Vanessa Stewart, is scheduled to be on display through Jan. 24 at the West Las Vegas Arts Center, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd. Visit artslasvegas.org or call 702-229-4800.
• The “Fabergé Revealed” exhibit is set to showcase 238 rare Fabergé artifacts in the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art through May 25. Tickets are $17 or $14 for Nevada residents and seniors 65 or older; and $12 for students, teachers and military members with valid ID. Children 12 or younger are admitted free. Audio tours are included in the price of admission, and complimentary docent tours are available at 2 p.m. daily. Visit bellagio.com/bgfa.
• The exhibit “Storyland: A Trip Through Childhood Favorites” is scheduled through Jan. 4 at the Discovery Children’s Museum, 360 Promenade Place. The exhibit transforms seven beloved and award-winning picture books into 3-D, play and learning environments. Visit discoverykidslv.org.
• Performances of Matt and Mattingly’s Bucket Show are scheduled at 10 p.m. Wednesday at the Scullery Theater, 150 Las Vegas Blvd. North. The two-man improv show with musical accompaniment is free, but audience members are encouraged to pay what they want into a bucket at the end of the performance. Visit mattandmattingly.com.
• In celebration of 15 years in Las Vegas, Madame Tussauds, 3377 Las Vegas Blvd. South, plans to offer $15 tickets to Nevada residents through Dec. 31. Visit madametussauds.com/lasvegas or call 702-862-7800.
• To celebrate its 15th anniversary, “Marriage Can Be Murder” is offering locals $30 tickets on the 15th of each month through July 2015. To secure the tickets, use the code 15years. The interactive dinner show is scheduled at 6:15 p.m. daily at the D Las Vegas, 301 Fremont St. Visit thed.com or call 702-388-2111.
• The Skull Show Biennial is on display from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and from noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays through Jan. 31 at the Donna Beam Gallery inside the Alta Ham Fine Arts building at UNLV, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway. Visit pac.unlv.edu or call 702-895-2787.

PLAN AHEAD

• Bank of America customers receive free museum entry the first weekend of most months at the Discovery Children’s Museum, 360 Promenade Place; the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, 900 Las Vegas Blvd. North; and the Springs Preserve, 333 S. Valley View Blvd. Admission is offered through the bank’s Museums on Us program, which allows Bank of America customers free access to select museums on the first weekend of every month. Participants must show their U.S. Trust, Merrill Lynch or Bank of America debit or credit card to receive free admission. Special event admission is not included. Visit museums.bankofamerica.com.
• Ward 5 Coffee with the Councilman is scheduled from 9 to 10 a.m. Jan. 8 at Starbucks, 751 N. Rancho Drive. Residents are invited for coffee and conversation on how to improve Ward 5 and the city of Las Vegas.
• Disney On Ice’s “Let’s Celebrate!” performances are planned from Jan. 14-18 at the Thomas & Mack Center, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway. Opening-night tickets start at $12. Visit disneyonice.com or call 702-739-3267.
• Registration is open for the seventh annual Scale the Strat fundraising stair climbing event, slated for March 1. Scale the Strat is scheduled concurrently with the third annual USA Stair Climb Championship, expected to attract elite stair climbers from all over the world and allow amateur climbers the opportunity to rub elbows with the best athletes in the sport as they ascend the stairs in the Stratosphere Tower. An early-bird discount rate of $40 is available before Dec. 31. Climbers are also asked to make a minimum $150 fundraising pledge for the American Lung Association. Online support and personal fundraising coaching is available. Visit scalethestrat.com.
• Las Vegas Academy Theatre performances of “Aida,” a musical by Elton John and Tim Rice, are scheduled Feb. 19 through March 7 in the Lowden Theater for the Performing Arts at Ninth Street and Clark Avenue. Tickets are $12 to $20. Visit lvacademytheatre.org.
• Las Vegas Academy Theatre plans to present the play “My Friend the Fox” by William Glennon April 23 through May 2 in the Lowden Theater for the Performing Arts at Ninth Street and Clark Avenue. Tickets are $10 to $15. Visit lvacademytheatre.org.
• Tickets are on sale for One Night for One Drop, planned at 7:30 p.m. March 20 inside “The Beatles LOVE” theater at The Mirage, 3400 Las Vegas Blvd. South. The show is set to feature Cirque du Soleil performers and raise funds for One Drop, a charity created to ensure that water is accessible to all. Tickets start at $100 and are tax-deductible. Visit onedrop.org/onenight or call 844-339-2837.