Christmas kicks with Rockettes

“Radio City Spectacular”: A little bit of Broadway will grace the stage of Seattle’s Paramount Theatre when the Radio City Rockettes use their eye-high kicks to start their holiday show, “Radio City Christmas Spectacular.”

The Christmas Spectacular returns to Seattle for 42 performances and a cast and crew of nearly 100 people.

And it’s not all stilettos and stockings either. Younger patrons can be entertained by the teddy bear dance, the wooden soldiers coming to life, the reindeer flying and Santa and his elves preparing for their big night. Of course, the Radio City Rockettes will perform their fancy footwork.

“We realize that not everyone can go to New York for Christmas, so we’ll bring a New York style Christmas to Seattle,” said Amy Gentry, general manager of Broadway Across America Northwest Region.

The Radio City Rockettes got their start in 1925 as the “Missouri Rockets.” With their precision moves, the Rockettes have since sealed their fame as an American treasure with performances that feature glamour and complex choreography.

“The Radio City Christmas Spectacular” opens at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Paramount, 911 Pine St., Seattle. Shows are at various times through Jan. 3. Tickets range from $25 to $75. Call 206-292-2787 or go to ticketmaster.com, stgpresents.org or BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.

“The Shakespearean Murder Mystery or Someone was Rotten at Dinner”: The touring theater group of Last Leaf Productions is at it again, this time bringing the Bard into the mix of this mystery dinner show.

The story begins with King Faraday celebrating the birthday of his ward, the lovely but somewhat dim Lady Enred. He planned to make a big announcement at the event. Both his stepson, Prince Hammonreigh, and his wife, Queen Beatrix, think it will be that he intends to wed the prince to Lady Enred, but before he can make any announcement, the King turns up dead.

Only a master storyteller like Shakespeare can figure out the twists to this murder scenario. The Bard travels back in time to act as a detective — and get a good plot for his next play as well.

“The Shakespearean Murder Mystery or Someone was Rotten at Dinner” performs at 7:30 tonight and Saturday and at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 18 and 19 at Basil &Chives, 114 N. Lewis St., Monroe. Combination tickets include a five-course meal and show for $38 or obtain show-only tickets for $10. Call 360-794-4000 or go to www.basilandchivesrestaurant.com.

“The Shakespearean Murder Mystery” also plays at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Pacific Rim Ballroom and Supper Club, 3228 Marine Drive NE, Marysville. Tickets are $12 and dinner will be available beginning at 6:30 p.m. Call 360-659-0900 or go to www.pacificrimsupperclub.com.

“The Nutcracker”: The Whidbey Playhouse and The Ballet Slipper present this version of Tchaikovsky’s timeless holiday ballet.

Eight performances are planned of “The Nutcracker,” who along with his band of soldiers rises to defend Clara. The Prince and Clara are victorious and travel to where dancing Snowflakes greet them in the Land of the Sugar Plum Fairy. The ballet is choreographed by Diane Geragotelis and performed by many students from the Ballet Slipper and performers from the Whidbey Playhouse.

“The Nutcracker” starts at 7 tonight and repeats at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays Dec. 12, 13, 18, 19 and 20 at the Whidbey Playhouse, 730 SE Midway Blvd., Oak Harbor. Tickets are $15 and $10. Call 360-679-2237 or go to whidbeyplayhouse.com.

“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”: The church Christmas pageant had been a standing tradition for as long as anyone could remember. But this year, everything was going to be different.

Silver Lake Theatre presents this wacky version of a Christmas classic starring the clan known as the worst kids in the whole history of the world, the Herdmans.

The Herdmans found out about the pageant and decided they wanted to be in it. This got everyone worried. After all, “they lied and stole and smoked cigars, even the girls, and talked dirty and cussed their teachers and took the name of the Lord in vain and set fire to Fred Shoemaker’s old broken-down tool house,” according to the Silver Lake Theatre Web site. So who knows what ways they could find to ruin the pageant? You’ll have to go to the show to find out.

“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” starts at 7 tonight and runs through the weekend at 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Hope Church, 11329 23rd Drive SE, Everett. Tickets are $5 at the door.

“The Eight: Reindeer Monologues”: Santa has finally gone too far and the reindeer are mad.

Here’s a Christmas show by Jeff Goode that allows the audience to catch a glimpse into the affairs of the famous eight reindeer as they confess how things really go down at the North Pole when the sleigh ride is over.

Though hilarious, the reindeer can get a bit obscene and vicious so it’s not recommended for those who believe in Santa or are easily offended. This production is part of the Driftwood Players’ Late Night Shows to satisfy your “inner grownup.”

“The Eight: Reindeer Monologues” starts at midnight tonight with shows at midnight Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 19 at Wade James Theatre, 950 Main St., Edmonds. All tickets are $5. Call 425-774-9600 or go to www.driftwoodplayers.com.

Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424; goffredo@heraldnet.com.