December at the Wadsworth

FESTIVAL OF TREES & TRADITIONS

A $5 fundraising surcharge is added to all museum admissions during the Festival of Trees & Traditions. Skip the line! Book your tickets online.

December 1—December 11 (closed Monday–Wednesday)

Thursdays & Sundays, noon-5pm

Fridays & Saturdays, noon-7pm

Holiday trees, wreaths, and décor fill the galleries, turning the museum into a winter wonderland. All items are for sale and proceeds benefit the museum, making it possible for the Wadsworth to create meaningful experiences with art and each other possible all year round. Daily entertainment adds extra cheer to the occasion. Click here for the full schedule of performances.

This annual fundraiser is organized by the Friends of the Wadsworth Atheneum.

SECOND SATURDAYS FOR FAMILIES

WINTER SOUNDTRACK

Free admission noon–2pm, fundraising rates apply after 2pm

Saturday, December 10

Noon–2pm

Hear the sounds of the season during our annual Festival of Trees & Traditions. Dancers from the Hartt School Community Division perform selections from their acclaimed production of The Nutcracker. Create crafts inspired by seasonal customs from around the world.

HARTFORD GAY MEN'S CHORUS

HOLIDAY HIJINX!

Tickets $36-$51 at hgmc.org

Saturday, December 10 & Sunday, December 11

2pm & 8pm Saturday | 3pm Sunday

Join the Hartford Gay Men’s Chorus in the theater at the Wadsworth for some “Holiday Hijinx!”. The HGMC will be performing many Holiday favorites as well as a one act musical comedy “who dun it” mystery. “Holiday Hijinx!” is a play about a chorus during a dress rehearsal for their Holiday show, however, things keep going wrong. Who keeps sabotaging the rehearsal and why? Come hear some wonderful choral music and share a few laughs this Holiday Season with the Hartford Gay Men’s Chorus!

CONSERVATOR TALK

VREL'S STREET SCENE WITH ALLEN KOSANOVICH

Free with admission. Meet in front of the Museum Shop.

Friday, December 16

1pm

Jacobus Vrel’s Street Scene (c. 1654–62) returns to Wadsworth’s galleries for the first time since 2019, following technical analysis and conservation. Join Paintings Conservator Allen Kosanovich for a behind-the-scenes look at the steps taken to conserve this important painting by an enigmatic artist who captured the everyday interiors and street scenes of seventeenth-century Dutch life.

THE NUTCRACKER SUITE & SPICY

Tickets $40–$50 at conneticdance.com or (860) 251-9194

Friday & Saturday, December 16 & 17, 8pm

Sunday, December 18, 2pm

A rousing, toe-tapping, high-kicking spin on the classical ballet. Choreographed and directed by Carolyn Paine and performed by CONNetic Dance, the performance returns to the Wadsworth this winter. This quirky, innovative production features memorable scenes such as the riotous Ugly Sweater Christmas party and the dizzying SnowBall—a beautiful scene with dancers wearing eye-popping LED tutus glide across the stage on pearly white exercise balls as snow falls. The production’s choreography and story fuse together ballet, contemporary, hip-hop, breakdancing, jazz, tap, ballroom, and acrobatics. Don’t miss this chance to once again add spice to your holiday season.

MUSIC IN THE GALLERIES

VERA MEYER AND THE GLASS HARMONICA

Free with museum admission

Saturday, December 17

1:30-2:30pm

A musical instrument made of glass? Explore the contemporary glass art on view in Fired Up: Glass Today as Vera Meyer performs an informal concert on the glass harmonica, a musical instrument developed by Benjamin Franklin.

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS

Free with museum admission

Sunday, December 18

Noon-2pm

Celebrate the start of Hanukkah with art-making, music, and much more. In collaboration with the Mandell Jewish Community Center and PJ Library of Greater Hartford.

TOURS

Register in advance for docent-guided tours via thewadsworth.org. All tours last roughly one hour. Face masks/coverings are encouraged while visiting the museum and required while attending all tours and gallery talks.

HIGHLIGHTS

Thursdays—Sundays, 2pm

SPECIAL THEME

Art, Innovation, and Tradition

Saturdays & Sundays, 12:30pm

Please note there is no Art, Innovation, and Tradition tour on December 10.

Fired Up: Glass Today

Thursdays—Sundays, 3:30pm

FAMILY TOURS

Little ones, strollers, and intergenerational bonding expected. Adults unaccompanied by children are encouraged to sign up for our Highlights or Special Theme Tours.

Please note there are no family tours on December 10.

Eyes on Art

Every second Saturday, 12:15pm

Recommended for ages twelve and under.

ABCs Art, Books, Connections

Every second Saturday, 1:30pm

Recommended for ages six and under.