Welcome Yule

Solstice Singers will present “Welcome Yule,” a pageant of carols and songs, instrumental music, drama, and dance in the spirit of the Renaissance. Performances will take place at the Community Hall at 68 Water Street in Woods Hole on Saturday, December 21 and Sunday, December 22 – both at 4 pm. The hall is accessible to people with disabilities.

Tickets for Saturday Dec 21, $25, students $10, under 5 free

Tickets for Sunday Dec 22, $25, students $10, under 5 free

Major credit cards, Google and Apple Pay accepted. No processing fee will be added.

Performed in colorful period costumes, the program celebrates Christmas and the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. Joining Solstice Singers this year are Duo Passacaglia and guest instrumentalists, several traditional dance teams, and the children’s chorus.

This year’s program centers around the joy of the Yule season and the natural changes that occur over the course of the year. The theme of the “four noble trees” and the forces of nature feature prominently in the musical selections. The program also includes many of Solstice Singers’ popular classics, such as The Boar’s Head Carol, Lord of the Dance, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas, along with other evocative pieces in celebration of the season. Artistic Director Lore Loftfield De Bower says, “We are exploring a wide range of musical styles this year, all focused around a joyful Yule season.”

Duo Passacaglia, comprised of Jan Elliott on recorder and English concertina and Lisa Esperson on percussion including rigg, tar, dumbek, bells and tambourine, performs medieval and Renaissance music from European traditions with occasional forays into the music of other lands. In this show, several guest artists will join the duo on recorder, serpent, harp, and hurdy gurdy to perform instrumental arrangements and to accompany the singers.

This year’s program features performances by several traditional dance groups. The Vineyard Swordfish, a crowd pleaser at Solstice Singers performances for decades under the direction of Jan Elliott, will perform a traditional “longsword” dance. A rapper sword dance using flexible “swords,” with intricate figures and energetic stepping, will be performed by the youth group Nobska Lights. Nobska Lights’ Morris dancing duo will delight the audience with athletic stepping and leaping wearing bells and colorful sashes.

This year’s mummers’ play, written and directed by Lisa Jo Rudy, features John Barleycorn (the symbolic personification of ale), four “noble trees,” the Grim Reaper, and a quack Arborist. The play puts a new spin on the traditional theme of death (winter) followed by the renewal of life (spring). Can John Barleycorn protect the trees?  Or will the trees save the day?

Les Enfants du Soleil, the children’s chorus ranging in age from 7 to 13, will participate in singing, dancing, and general revelry throughout the show. Their repertoire ranges from solemn to playful.