David's Anthem Journal

Happy Holidays to You!

 

 

December 20 Deadline for Early Bird New Year’s Eve Price

 

 

Tuesday, December 20, is the last opportunity to buy your tickets at the early-bird price of $85 per person for the spectacular New Year’s Eve celebration at Anthem Center. After Tuesday, the price goes up by $15.

The party starts at 7:00 p.m. and goes non-stop until 1:00 a.m.

 

 

Dance to the music of De ja Vu with a fabulous all-you-can-eat-buffet catered by Ray Esposito’s Superior Events.

Party favors and a champagne toast will round out the evening.

Here is the event’s wonderful menu:

 

Holiday Event: Christmas Concert at New Song

 

 

 

New Song Church, right here in Anthem, is noted for the quality of its musical presentations, and the entire community is invited to a special Christmas concert, as described below, on Sunday, December 18.

As you can see in the announcement, there are three performance times available.

Regardless of your religious persuasion, you are sure to enjoy the message of Peace On Earth, Good Will Toward Men, as embodied in the splendid music of Christmas.

 

Put Your Decorated Home on TV

 

 

Have you decorated the exterior of your home for Christmas?

 

 

Once again this year, our Channel 99 wants to televise some of Sun City Anthem’s decorated homes for sharing with viewers.

If you are proud of the way you have decorated your home, or know of neighbors who have done an especially nice job, here’s how to get your home on TV:

Call Channel 99 reporter Margaret Uematsu at 966-9918.

Margaret and her videographer husband Kyoshi will shoot video of your home and get it on the air later this month.

Don’t just rely on people driving by on your street to see your handiwork. Call Margaret and share it with our viewers and with people all over the world who access Channel 99 by Internet.

Bingo This Sunday!

 

 

Could you use a little extra cash in your pocket, while at the same time helping to support the many worthy activities of our Community Service Club?

Just in time for the holidays, the final Bingo session of the year will be held Sunday evening at Independence Center.

We can’t promise that Santa will be there, but we CAN promise a good time in the company of some great people.

 

A Great Holiday Show

 

 

If you’re looking for some wholesome and enjoyable holiday entertainment, a short trip over to Sun City MacDonald Ranch on Saturday, December 10, may do the trick.

“Sparkle & Spice” will feature, among others, Sun City Anthem’s own Mary Richard, as well as our Showstoppers Dance Troupe.

Details are in this poster:

 

Holiday Event: Performing Arts Club 10th Anniversary Gala

 

  

With Sun City Anthem having been incorporated in 1998 and welcoming its first residents in 1999, there are many residents and community organizations observing milestone occasions.

One of these organizations is the Performing Arts Club (SCAPAC).

 

  

SCAPAC’s formal beginning was in 2002, when it merged with the existing Organ Grinders Club. Since then, it has grown into an organization that puts on professional productions utilizing the talents of residents in all the theater arts, including acting, dance, song, comedy, clowning, and all aspects of stage management and production support.

Tens of thousands of residents have made up SCAPAC’s delighted audiences, marveling at the increasingly challenging productions the club has presented.

To celebrate its decade of accomplishments, the Performing Arts Club is having its 10TH ANNIVERSARY GALA in the Anthem Center Ballroom on Saturday, December 17, starting at 6:00 p.m.

A catered dinner will be served by Ray Esposito’s Superior Events, and as indicated below, there will be live entertainment, surprise guests, and the awarding of the First Annual Barry Friedman Memorial Award to a club member who has rendered outstanding service.

Who should attend? Current and past Performing Arts Club members, of course, but also any residents who have especially enjoyed the many performances and/or have friends who are active in the club.

Full details are in the poster.

  

Holiday Event: Barbra & Frank Holiday Concert

 

 

Could you imagine anything more delightful than having Frank Sinatra and Barbra Streisand sing your favorite Christmas songs, along with their own signature classics, just for you, right here in Sun City Anthem?

That’s not possible, of course, but you can enjoy the next best thing on Friday, December 9, when Sharon Owens and Sebastian Anzaldo bring their “Barbra & Frank” Holiday Concert to our own Freedom Hall.

 

 

Owens & Anzaldo have built an international reputation with their acclaimed show, “Barbara & Frank: The Concert That Never Was,” which played to sold-out SCA audiences and is currently in residence at Las Vegas' Western Casuarina Hotel.

IMPORTANT TICKET INFORMATION: You can purchase tickets for this show at the concierge desk in Anthem Center for only $15.00 through Friday, December 2, after which the price will be a still-reasonable $18.00.

You have your choice of two shows, at 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

If you were to see this show at the Western Casuarina, the seniors ticket price is $36.99, so there are great savings to be had.

Sharon Owens bears an uncannily strong resemblance to Barbra Streisand, and if you close your eyes when listening to Owens and Alzando, you’ll think you are in the presence of the originals. Personally, I have found the effect astounding.

Sharon Owens is a special favorite among the legion of Barbra Streisand fans who know that the “Funny Girl” rarely performs in concert. She has been featured on “Extra,” “Entertainment Tonight” and “Access Hollywood” among other programs, was a regular in “Legends in Concert,” and has appeared on the finest concert stages of Europe.

Anzaldo has become one of the top Sinatra interpreters in the country. In addition to teaming up with Owens, he starred in the “Tribute to the Rat Pack” here in Las Vegas.

We’ll certainly be attending this show, along with friends. Give yourself one of the best holiday presents possible, along with perhaps treating your friends, and help keep exciting live entertainment alive in Sun City Anthem.

Here is a special video prepared just for this show. Please enjoy:

 

A Holiday Event: Christmas at the Ethel M Cactus Garden

 

 

If you have never seen the spectacular display of hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights at the Ethel M Cactus Garden, or if you haven’t enjoyed this holiday show for two or three years, this is one seasonal event you won’t want to miss.

 

 

The display gets better each year, as more lights and special effects are added to the three-acre Cactus Garden, and the best thing about this is the admission fee: It is FREE!

 

 

 

The holiday display will be open through January 1, and it is the perfect thing to do if you are entertaining visiting grandkids, as well as adult visitors who have never taken in this spectacle. I would recommend visiting, if possible, before sunset so that you can stroll the Cactus Garden and read the signage describing the hundreds of different flora, after which you can delight in the seasonal wonderland when the lights come on.

 

 

And as always during this event, the adjacent Ethel M Chocolate Factory Tour will be open for your pleasure, with your choice of a free sweet treat at the end of the short tour. In addition, the Ethel M Store will be open with chocolates and other delights for sale.

Back by popular demand, visitors will be able to see the Holiday Cactus Garden in 3-D. Special glasses, available for $2 each, will bring the lighted attractions to life with special 3-D effects.

Directions to the Cactus Garden, located in Henderson and only a 10-mile drive, are simple. Take Green Valley Parkway to Sunset. Turn right on Sunset, and at the intersection where Sunset doglegs to head toward Sunset Station, go straight across the intersection instead. The Cactus Garden will be just ahead on your left.

We attended the grand opening of this year’s holiday display on November 15th. Comedian George Wallace was the MC, with Human Nature and Zowie Bowie present to offer holiday songs.

Here is a brief video of the opening event:

 

A Holiday Event for Your Entertainment

 

 

Readers: There will be many special events taking place around the Las Vegas Valley over the holiday season. Some are for your pure entertainment pleasure, while others combine enjoyable experiences with fundraising for worthy causes.

I have established a new category called Holiday Events in order to bring information about some of these activities to you. Some of the activities are not actually holiday-related but will be suitable for mention because they do add to the joy of the season.

Here is the first one:

 

 

My friend, world-renowned pianist Danny Wright, has not only performed twice in our Freedom Hall, but has also settled here and formed a charitable foundation called the Danny Wright Foundation of Music.

The Foundation is presenting a gala concert called A Soulful Christmas on Friday, December 2, at Binion’s in downtown Las Vegas. Showtime is 8:00 p.m.

Tickets are only $35, or $60 for show and cocktails, $85 for a VIP show ticket with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.

Besides Danny, more than 25 talented performers are coming together for this memorable event. Performers will include many popular artists who are well-known in Las Vegas, including Genevieve, Mark Giovi, Jackie Wilson’s son bobby Brooks Wilson, Lisa Gay, Jack Walker, Domenick Allen (of Foreigner), Lorraine Hunt Bono and Dennis Bono, and many more.

Tickets can be purchased now at www.dw-foundation.org. For more information, call (702) 818-1142 or email info@dw-foundation.org.

From the poster above: Danny Wright and friends present a Christmas Gala. A memorable evening and show that will warm the heart to help children with catastrophic illnesses in hospitals, brighten the lives of seniors, re-establish music and cultural arts programs, expanding the “Youth Day” program with the Las Vegas Philharmonic and bring quality live entertainment back into our community.