Marvellous merriment at the V&A Waterfront this December!

Cape Town, 4 December 2015 — The spirit of the season is upon the V&A Waterfront this December, with a packed line-up of festive entertainment. From visits from Santa Claus and Christmas Light Shows, to gift-wrapping stations and extended shopping hours for convenience, visitors are sure to leave with in a festive mood, with enough gifts to fill their Christmas stockings to overflowing.

Trading hours at the V&A Waterfront will be extended from Thursday, 10 December until Christmas Eve, ensuring that visitors can shop to their hearts’ content until later in the evenings, in preparation for Christmas Day. Visitors who prefer a tranquil shopping experience can visit the Wharf before 10am or after 7pm to avoid the Christmas rush.

Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre will open from 9am to 10pm from Thursday, 10 December to Thursday, 24 December, and trade on Christmas Day is optional.

The Waterfront’s new home of craft and design, the Watershed, will have extended hours from Thursday, 10 December to Wednesday, 23 December, opening from 10am to 8pm daily during this period. The Watershed will be open from 10am to 5pm on Christmas Eve and will not open on Christmas Day.

In keeping with the spirit of this season of giving, Cape Town charities will benefit from the proceeds of four gift wrapping stations, three within the Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre, and one in the Watershed. Shoppers can have their gifts conveniently wrapped, safe in the knowledge that others will also benefit from this. The charities include The Haven Night Shelter in Napier Street, the Home of Hope in Table View, TEARS Animal Rescue in Sunnydale, Nazareth House in Vredehoek, and Atlantic Hope in Sea Point.

Christmas Light Shows: Thursday, 10 and Friday, 11 December

The first day of extended trading hours, Thursday 10 December, will be marked by a Christmas Light Show to dazzle Victoria Wharf shoppers with a beautiful display of coloured light patterns, all set to Christmas-themed music, carols and performances to instil traditional Christmas cheer.

Light Shows will be held twice daily on Thursday, 10 December and Friday, 11 December, at 8pm and 9pm. The Light Show is new to this year’s V&A December schedule and aims to delight young and old alike.

Meet Santa: Wednesday, 16 to Thursday, 24 December (excluding Thursday, 17 December)

Santa will fly in from the North Pole to meet with his legion of young followers at the Victoria Wharf Centre Court on Wednesday, 16 December, between 11am and 12.30pm, and later return at the same time each day from Friday, 18 December to Thursday, 24 December.

With a ho-ho-ho and a belly full of fun, Santa will personally receive children’s letters and hear directly whether they believe they have been naughty or nice this year.

Carols, choristers and Christmas bands

· Tuesday, 15 December: Rocking Carols & Nativity Play at the V&A
· Tuesday, 22 December: Mitchell’s Plain Crusader Christmas Band & Apostle Choristers
· Wednesday, 23 December: Salvation Army Band & Cape Town Gospel Choir

The V&A Amphitheatre audiences can also get into a cheerful, festive spirit with an array of entertainment for the whole family. Lovers of big bands and Christmas songs will appreciate the carols, choristers and Christmas bands scheduled to ring in the festive season at the V&A Amphitheatre the week before Christmas.

Festive musical entertainment kicks off at the Amphitheatre with a Rocking Carols performance on Tuesday, 15 December, where visitors can be entertained by a Nativity Play and carols with a rock-themed twist from 8pm that evening.

The Mitchell’s Plain Crusader Christmas Band and the Apostle Choristers will entertain audiences on Tuesday, 22 December. First up is the Mitchell’s Plain Crusader Christmas Band, which will enthuse audiences from 6pm, with the reverberating sounds that only a big band can produce.

The Apostle Choristers follow on at 7.15pm on Tuesday, 22 December, ending the evening on a high festive note. First established in 1995 to promote choral music within the community, the choir is managed by the Ithemba Cultural Society. It is musically directed by well-known Camillo Lombard and is divided into three regions, namely the Cape Metropole, Boland and the Swartland.

Big bands return again on Wednesday, 23 December, as the Salvation Army Band takes to the V&A Amphitheatre stage at 6pm. With a proud musical history that extends over 100 years, the Salvation Army Band has produced many well-known local musicians, including Hugh Masekela. Using music as the platform, the organisation reaches out to young South Africans to offer them an alternative to community challenges such as drug addiction and poverty.

Wrapping up the V&A Amphitheatre festive season entertainment is the Cape Town Gospel Choir, performing for Waterfront visitors at 7.15pm on Wednesday, 23 December. Formed in 2010 and currently under the direction of Edinburgh University music graduate Colin Peckham, the Choir “aspires to the best in gospel music in the Western Cape”.