Overview:

Thursday’s booked. But what about the rest of the week? We have tree lighting, an art show, two dance showcases and an upcoming author talk for you.

Happy day-before-Thanksgiving, Lookout readers. The holiday season is well and truly upon us, and I know you likely have your Thursday booked … so, as Mariah Carey would put it: It’s tiiiiiime. (Though, I do have one Thanksgiving-themed event for you.)

Let’s get into the agenda items for this week: 

🎶 Thanks Give Sing: If you’re actually looking for something to do Thanksgiving evening, look no further than the Thanks Give Sing. This is the 19th year for the communal singing event, led by community-singing songleader Karly Loveling. 

  • When: Thursday, Nov. 27, 6:50 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
  • Where: WOW Hall, 291 W. Eighth Ave., Eugene
  • How much: Free to attend, but the event lists a suggested donation of $25 to $55 or more. Donations will go toward the Indigenous-led Traditional Ecological Inquiry Program, from the nonprofit Long Tom Watershed Council.

🎄 Fifth Street Public Market Tree Lighting: The instant Thanksgiving is over, as we all know, it’s the holiday season. Get into it on Friday with the Night of a Thousand Stars at the 5th Street Public Market, which will have live music, a Santa appearance, a light show and eggnog service. It does not matter how old I get: Seeing twinkling lights and feeling the holiday vibe always stirs something in me.

  • When: Friday, Nov. 28, 6 to 8 p.m.
  • Where: Fifth Street Public Market, 296 E. Fifth Ave.
  • How much: Free to attend. (But if you want to do some 5th Street Public Market shopping, you’ll want to bring some cash, too.)

🖼️ Art for All Seasons Members Show: Your holiday shopping doesn’t have to be plastic from Amazon. Consider shopping at Maude Kerns Art Center’s largest show of the year, featuring works from members of the center and its ceramics offshoot, Club Mud. (Can’t make it? The artwork is also for sale online.)

  • When: Gallery hours are Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Saturdays noon to 4 p.m. The show will be on view through Dec. 19.
  • Where: Maude Kerns Art Center, 1910 E. 15th Ave., Eugene
  • How much: Free to attend, but bring money to buy art.

🎁 Christmas in Toyland: Exciting news: A holiday season ballet that ISN’T “The Nutcracker.” Ballet Fantastique’s holiday show “Christmas in Toyland” opens this weekend. It’s a trip to a storybook world scored by nostalgic big band and jazz classics. (Can’t go this weekend? You can stream the show on demand starting Dec. 5.)

  • When: Saturday, Nov. 29, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 30, at 2:30 p.m.
  • Where: The Silva Concert Hall at the Hult Center in downtown Eugene
  • How much: Tickets are available online; prices vary by section, but start at $24.

🍂 Fermata Ballet Collective’s Fall Works: This showcase from the Fermata Ballet Collective will see local dancers performing both finished and in-progress pieces, allowing the audience to see how the ballet company’s artists think through a choreographed work. A focus on process will make for an interesting peek behind the curtain and into the studio space from Fermata, a winner of a Brava Award from the Arts and Business Alliance of Eugene.

  • When: There will be three performances: Saturday Nov. 29 at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., and Sunday Nov. 30 at 1 p.m. Saturday’s performances will feature a Q&A with the artists after the show, while Sunday will have a post-show reception.
  • Where: The Stage Left Theatre at the Very Little Theatre, 2350 Hilyard St., Eugene
  • How much: Tickets are available online on a sliding scale, from $5 to $25.

📚 Ben Passmore on “Black Arms to Hold You Up”: Ignatz Award-winning cartoonist Ben Passmore will be at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art next week to talk about his newest book, a graphic novel history of Black activism that The New York Times’ Sam Thielman called unflinching, thoughtful and funny in his review. 

  • When: Wednesday, Dec. 3, at 5:30 p.m.
  • Where: The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, 1430 Johnson Lane on the University of Oregon campus.
  • How much: Free to attend.

🎥 What’s playing at the movies: 

  • Nothing says fun post-Thanksgiving movie watching with the family like death and commitment. “Eternity” banks on its premise: We’ve heard of “’til death do us part,” sure, but what happens when you actually die and reunite with your dead husband … alongside Husband No. 2? It’s hard to outdo the all-timer afterlife romantic comedy “Defending Your Life,” but I’m never against absurd bureaucratic visions of heaven. Playing at Metro Cinemas and Cinemark Eugene Springfield 17.
  • “Zootopia 2” is the kind of movie that doesn’t need to have a plot to make millions and millions of dollars, and I don’t need to recommend it for you to have plans to see it (provided members of your household are in a certain age bracket). Playing at Metro Cinemas, Regal Valley River Center and Cinemark Eugene Springfield 17.

Annie Aguiar is the Arts and Culture Correspondent. She has reported arts news and features for national and local newsrooms, including at the Seattle Times, the Washington Post and most recently as a reporting fellow for the New York Times’ Culture desk covering arts and entertainment.