The Midwinter Revels 2025
On Christmas Eve, 1600s, just outside the Palace of Versailles, a royal carriage carrying priceless art from across the Southeast Asia breaks down in a small French Village. Among the treasures is a carving of Lapu-Lapu as well as other pieces representing the rich traditions of the Philipp9ines, Cambodia and Korea. Between laughter, song, dance and the warmth of a village Noel celebration, culture and Christmas joy collide in an unforgettable holiday adventure!
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Thank you to our 2025 sponsors!
AN ANNUAL TRADITION
Every December at Tacoma's Rialto Theater we present The Midwinter Revels®, a fully-staged theatrical production for all ages that intentionally blends professionals and amateurs, children and adults, audience and players, high art and folk idiom. It is full of singing, dancing, and storytelling - beauty, mystery, and hilarity. The production draws large audiences from all over the Pacific Northwest and beyond.
The Midwinter Revels® audiences expect a similar experience from year to year. Our challenge is to create that experience while each year setting the production in a different time and place (e.g. Welsh, Italian Renaissance, Galician, Nordic, Celtic, American, Victorian, Mexican, etc).
Some Revels Rituals return to the stage almost every year, whatever the setting: the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance; the Shortest Day poem by Susan Cooper; the Lord of the Dance to end the first act (dancing in the aisles!); a hilarious mummers play (or other folk play depending on the culture and time, perhaps commedia or an English panto - always funny, often dragons are involved); and the Sussex Mummers Carol with brass and timpani and glorious descant to end the performance. Learn more about Revels Rituals at Revels.org.
To see galleries of past Midwinter Revels productions, visit our Archive.
The Midwinter Revels® audiences expect a similar experience from year to year. Our challenge is to create that experience while each year setting the production in a different time and place (e.g. Welsh, Italian Renaissance, Galician, Nordic, Celtic, American, Victorian, Mexican, etc).
Some Revels Rituals return to the stage almost every year, whatever the setting: the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance; the Shortest Day poem by Susan Cooper; the Lord of the Dance to end the first act (dancing in the aisles!); a hilarious mummers play (or other folk play depending on the culture and time, perhaps commedia or an English panto - always funny, often dragons are involved); and the Sussex Mummers Carol with brass and timpani and glorious descant to end the performance. Learn more about Revels Rituals at Revels.org.
To see galleries of past Midwinter Revels productions, visit our Archive.
