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Silver Dollar City Christmas Dazzles
The Brightest Lights
in Branson or Anywhere
Are At Silver Dollar City
Story and photos By Bob Lindsey
A good comparison of the bigger and brighter new Christmas in Midtown at Silver Dollar City is with the ABC show, The Great American Light Fight. While the intense illuminations are nearly the same, the Silver Dollar display in Branson is much bigger in size and scope. And better.
It’s being called the largest single lighting expansion in the past two decades. Christmas In Midtown is just down the hill from the 90-foot musical Christmas tree that has added 350,000 colorful LED lights in the Town Square. It takes holiday lighting to a new level that even the Great American Light Fight can’t top. There are 145 miles of LED lights that outline every building and illuminate flying angels, running reindeer, moving trains, with moving lights, dozens of stars and snowflakes. Look up and you’ll see the giant rotating globe.
The 5-Story Special Effects
Christmas Tree, beginning at dusk, plays Christmas songs, with up to 100 light changes per second, while lights around the Town Square are flashing.
Rudolph’s Holly Jolly™ Christmas Light Parade winds through the streets twice each evening with nine musical lighted floats, illuminated with 200,000 LED lights. There are 45 colorful costumed characters, such Bumble the Abominable Snow Monster, 14-foot moose characters, 12-foot tall elves, 10-foot candy canes, penguins and large marching wooden soldiers.
While the new lighting addition is drawing huge crowds (visitors are urge to consider coming Thursdays as the weekends are packed) there always so much more of festive events each holiday season down at Silver Dollar City.
Two Musical Productions
You can see two original musical productions, A Dickens’ Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life. Christmas Carol is an adaptation of the famous Dickens classic with revolving sets, flying spirits, pyrotechnic special effects and a cast of 15, with a live band. We’ve seen the Christmas Carol twice before at Silver Dollar City, but It’s a Wonderful Life was a new experience this year. This is a musical interpretation of the classic film, with special effects and a cast of 14 singers/actors who highlight the major parts of the film.
Condensed into a one-hour production (three times each day and four times on Saturday) the story of George Bailey moves along in part by having his guardian angel. Clarence, and his superior, Joseph, fill in the story gaps with narration. It works fine for compressing a three-hour movie classic into a one-hour musical offering a variety of songs, many original, but also from Broadway musicals such as Cabaret and even Monty Python’s Spamalot. While A Dicken’s Christmas Carol has played here for the past ten years, It’s a Wonderful Life has been playing at Silver Dollar City for five years and next year will its last, we were told. So don’t miss it if you go there for Christmas.
Other Shows & Attractions
Other popular shows and attractions at “the City” this season include:
- The Frontier Fa-La-La Follies is a 30-minute show featuring the Saloon Girls and Silver Dollar Band This is dancing and singing and just plain old-fashioned fun.
- Rudolph’s Christmas Town featuring the reindeer with the red nose, Clarice and Bumble, and the Abominable Snow Monster.
- The Cajun Connection, one of our favorites who play year round here, but Cedric Bonoit puts a little Christmas on the Bayou touch in a 25-minutes show this time of year.
- Tinker Junior’s Toy Shop is a 25 minute whimsical journey with Tinker, Buddy, Jack and Raggedy singing and dancing that the kids will love.
Two other musical offerings are Tracy Heaton, Branson Pianist of the Year, performing Christmas favorites on the keyboard at Town Square and the Homestead Pickers, doing 20 minute shows four times daily with traditional Ozark songs and humor.
And of course, the real meaning of the season is always evident down here, and The Living Nativity is a 15-minute moving presentation of the birth of Jesus.
Abundance of Food Options
No visit is complete to Silver Dollar City without sampling the many foods, soups, desserts,seasonal comfort food and full holiday buffets at three locations: The Prime Rib Buffet at Reunion Hall from 3-8 p.m, the Mine Restaurant and Molly’s Mill Restaurant buffets available for lunch or dinner. There are several skillet cookery locations for one-course meals such as the infamous succotash concoction, ham and bean bowls, chicken jambalaya cookery, whole hog sandwich, cheeseburger chowder, tator soup and Ozark original chili. For walk-around favorites, there are classic funnel cakes also available in apple butter, chocolate chip, maple, and brown sugar flavors.
And if you want to know more about Ozark cooking, the Culinary and Craft School at Echo Hollow has classes twice daily that feature holiday cooking and baking tips ($15 per class).
An Old Time Christmas at Silver Dollar City is open Thursdays-Sundays through Dec. 23, plus Wednesdays Nov. 22 and Dec. 20; closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and open daily Dec. 26-30. Hours are 1 to 9 p.m. most days, with extended hours on Saturdays. Information: 800-831-4FUN(386) or www.silverdollarcity.com. You can also download their app for the day you visit.
New Christmas Show On Showboat Branson Belle, Including Santa’s Pancakes & PJs Cruises
The Showboat Branson Belle transforms into a Christmas celebration on the lake as it decks the halls and the decks for the holiday season, with a new Celebrate Christmas headline show and expanded Santa’s Pancakes & PJs cruises for kids.
Holiday cruises run now through Jan 1. The new Celebrate Christmas show opened Nov. 4, with the cast performing new musical segments as well as classic and contemporary Christmas favorites. The show features the vocal and dance group The ShowMen, vocalist Cassandré Faimon-Haygood and the percussive dance group Rhythm, with contemporary selections from the Beach Boys to Michael Bublé to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The show is hosted by comedian and magician Christopher James, accompanied by The Rockin’ Dockers live band.
Santa’s Pancakes & PJs Cruises offer little ones the chance to dress up in their favorite holiday PJs and have a Christmas adventure as they are guided by map through the ship’s four decks. Costumed elves and fairies greet the kids at Sugar Plum Fairy Sweet Stops, face painting stations and Christmas wish list writing posts, time Following the cruise, kids can visit with Santa on the dock.
The Showboat’s Christmas cruises run now through Dec. 30, with special New Year’s Eve cruises on Dec. 31 and Jan 1. Santa’s Pancakes & PJs cruises are offered at 9 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, through Dec. 23. Visit www.showboatbransonbelle.com or call 800-775-BOAT(2628).
