News: Ballet, Music and more

Baton Rouge | Ballet From the Bayou

After 30 years of enchanting Baton Rouge audiences with the acclaimed holiday classic, “The Nutcracker — A Tale From the Bayou,” the show’s creators and original choreographers, Molly Buchmann and Sharon Mathews, have passed the baton to Rebecca Mathews Acosta and Jonna Cox as the Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre’s new artistic directors. Accompanied by the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, this year’s production (December 14-15) welcomes over 200 dancers from several parishes (batonrougeballet.org; ticketmaster.com).

Lafayette | Give the Gift of Music

A great gift for Queen fans: Give them tickets to the high-energy Acadiana Symphony Orchestra’s “The Music Of Queen: We Will Rock You!” concert (January 10, 2025). For a special holiday experience, reserve tickets to ASO’s 40th anniversary holiday concert, “A Zydeco Christmas” (December 5) featuring Zydeco Boss, Keith Frank and over 100 musicians (acadianasymphony.org).

New Orleans, Baton Rouge | Last Chance

Bare-breasted mermaids, huge alligators perched atop walls, tourists dangling 300 feet above the Mississippi River in gondolas, fireworks and water ballets, beer gardens and riverfront concerts featuring Ray Charles, Itzhak Perlman, Dionne Warwick, Boston Pops and Allen Toussaint are among the many unforgettable experiences shared by 7 million visitors during the six-month 1984 World’s Fair, the last one held in America. Experience some of the fair’s most notable elements during the final weeks of “Remembering the 1984 Louisiana World Exposition” exhibition ending December 20 in Baton Rouge. The 80-acre World’s Fair gave rise to the New Orleans Convention Center, Riverwalk and Warehouse District, now boasting some of the many celebrated restaurants and hotels that are helping New Orleans host Super Bowl LIX on February 9, 2025 (louisianaoldstatecapitol.org).

Lake Charles | An Educational Wonderland

The delayed opening of Port Wonder, now slated for December, brings the much-anticipated Children’s Museum of Southwest Louisiana with four distinct galleries and new installations: Nature (an interactive “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” experience), Health (body systems including a digestive maze), Tech (featuring a lab with rotating STEM activities) and City (a miniature town with myriad themed areas) plus the educational Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Nature and Science Center featuring several aquarium exhibits showcasing Louisiana’s rich biodiversity (for updates: visitlakecharles.org).