Jeremy Jordan Meets Santa, The Grinch Steals X-Mas & Patti LuPone Goes Solo in This Week’s Datebook

Broadway.com is spreading holiday cheer all season long, spotlighting tons of must-see events! Read on for this week’s top picks, from the arrival of The Grinch to the star-studded Joe Iconis Christmas Spectacular at 54 Below with Jeremy Jordan, Susan Blackwell and more.


MONDAY, DECEMBER 10
CHRISTIAN BORLE GETS A BREAK
Before Tony winner Christian Borle goes back to TV land for the Broadway-centric series Smash, he’ll be honored by the Transport Group at their Gimme a Break! benefit gala. The Broadway vet will receive the Transporting American Theatre Award for his stellar performances in Peter and the Starcatcher, Legally Blonde and more. Tony-winning producer Sue Frost and designer Paul Huntley will also be feted at the star-studded gala.

ALSO: Patrick Wilson and David Hyde Pierce help Sandy victims at Broadway Blows Back benefit; Adriane Lenox and Betsy Wolfe sing for toys at Joe’s Pub; Nicky Silver’s Pterodactyls returns to the Vineyard Theatre for a benefit reading; Karen Mason and Mx Justin Vivian Bond lend their talents to 54 Below; Anne Hathaway stops by Letterman; John Patrick Shanley’s Women of the World begins at Labyrinth Theater Company.


TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11
PATTI LUPONE & ANDREA MCARDLE ARE ON THE RECORD
If you missed Patti LuPone and Andrea McArdle’s sold-out solo shows at swanky Broadway hot spot 54 Below, you can still hear their show-stopping performances on your iPod. Recordings of LuPone’s show Far Away Places and McArdle’s 70s and Sunny will be released on CD—they’re the perfect stocking stuffers for Broadway fans.

ALSO: Laurie Metcalf travels to The Other Place on Broadway; Pulitzer Prize-winning play Water By the Spoonful begins previews at Second Stage; Glee releases its third holiday album; Museum of the Moving Image salutes Hugh Jackman; Girls Season 1, featuring Adam Driver and Andrew Rannells is available on DVD; Audra McDonald stops by The Colbert Report; Anthony Rapp’s Without You album hits stores.


WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12
FIND OUT WHAT RHYMES WITH AMERICA
Shmamerica? Momerika? For weeks, we've been trying to figure out the elusive word that rhymes with America, and we’re hoping to get an answer on the show’s opening night at Atlantic Theater Company. Starring True Blood’s Chris Bauer and Tony nominee Da’Vine Joy Randolph, What Rhymes With America tells the story of a man trying to pull his life together after a divorce.

ALSO: Steven Brinberg embodies Babs in Simply Barbra: A Very Brooklyn Christmas at 54 Below; Anne Hathaway and Alan Cumming make Live With Kelly and Michael twice as nice; The Heiress star Jessica Chastain takes a trip to Chelsea Lately.


THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13
THE GRINCH STEALS THE SHOW AT MSG
While the residents of Whoville love Christmas a lot, there’s one angry green guy who really does not. His name is the Grinch and he’s come back to town to turn bright smiles in New York upside down. Head to Madison Square Garden for a holiday treat—Jeff McCarthy stars as the grumpiest Grinch you could meet!

ALSO: The Wonderful Wizard of Song: The Music of Harold Arlen begins previews, Tom Wopat and Len Cariou croon at 54 Below; Hugh Jackman talks Les Miz on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.


FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14
HAVE A PICNIC WITH MAGGIE GRACE & ELLEN BURSTYN
It may be cold outside, but things are really heating up at the American Airlines Theatre! Set on a steamy Labor Day in the American heartland, the Roundabout Theatre Company revival of Wiliam Inge's Picnic features stage and screen stars Maggie Grace, Ellen Burstyn, Elizabeth Marvel, Sebastian Stan and Mare Winningham.

ALSO: Any Day Now, starring Tony winner Alan Cumming, hits movie theaters; Sasha Allen and Rob Lewis sing Christmas hits at Joe’s Pub; Carla DelVillaggio stars in Barbra: A Christmas Special at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.


SATURDAY, DECEMBER 15
JEREMY JORDAN & SUSAN BLACKWELL BRING HOLIDAY CHEER
Oh-ho, it’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with Jeremy Jordan, Broadway.com correspondent Susan Blackwell, Michael Cerveris and more at the 5th Annual Joe Iconis Christmas Spectacular at 54 Below. Get ready for classic holiday tunes, a visit from (drunk) Santa and more Broadway guest stars than you could shake a peppermint stick at.

ALSO: Last chance to get a crack at The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and see John Kevin Jones’ solo version of A Christmas Carol off-Broadway.


SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16
LAST CALL TO GET CLOSE TO A LION
If you’ve ever wanted a closer look at Simba, Nala, Rafiki and the Lion King tribe, don’t miss the stunning pop-up exhibit “Inside The Lion King” at 1095 Avenue of the Americas. The interactive mini-museum features more than 100 items, including hand-painted costumes, wax figurines and a giant elephant, all from the Tony-winning Broadway show. Best of all, admission is free!

ALSO: Final day to see off-Broadway’s Giant, The Twenty-Seventh Man, Golden Child and Oy, Vey! The Play; Darius de Haas and Mx. Justin Vivian Bond perform at 54 Below; Razzle Dazzle: The Songs of Kander & Ebb lights up the stage at the West Bank Cafe.