Let the Holidays ‘Show’ Your Family a Good Time

‘Rudolph and Other Holiday Stories’ 
Family members of all ages will enjoy this mashup of short holiday stories featuring Rudolph and other characters, both familiar and new, all performed by local youth actors. Shows can be attended in person or via livestream. Dec. 16–18. $12. Bellevue Youth Theatre, Bellevue

‘Paddington Saves Christmas’ 
What parent of small children can’t relate to hapless Paddington Bear, whose well-intentioned efforts so often go wrong? In Seattle Children’s Theatre’s holiday production, Paddington tries to make seasonal marmalade jam and help his neighbor tidy up to prepare for a holiday houseguest. Chaos ensues. Can Paddington save Christmas? Nov. 15–Dec. 31. $20–$40. Seattle Children’s Theatre, Seattle

‘Nyx and the Long Night’ 
Long before there was a Christmas holiday, cultures around the world celebrated the winter solstice. “Nyx and the Long Night,” an Olympia Family Theater coproduction with String & Shadow Puppet Theater, presents one of those winter folk myths in a full stage play with actors, musicians and large puppets. When sisters Sol and Luna drop the sun during their daily game of catch, it falls to Nyx — part girl, part tree — to save the world. Dec. 9–24. Recommended for ages 5 and older. $5–$35. Olympia Family Theater, Olympia 

‘The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley’ 
Jane Austen liked to end with a wedding, but weddings are just the beginning of dealing with the in-laws and difficult relatives. In this “Pride and Prejudice” postscript by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, Lydia is home for the holidays and the downstairs staff are scrambling to keep a secret. Recommended for ages 10 and older. Nov. 23–Dec. 30. $25–$51. (Read the ParentMap review.) Taproot Theatre, Seattle

‘Mr. Dickens and His Carol’ 
In this world premiere, Charles Dickens’ publishers demand a Christmas book within a month … or else. Adapted from Samantha Silva’s critically acclaimed novel, this fictional take on the origin of Dickens’ classic story is destined to become a new holiday classic in its own right. Nov. 25–Dec. 23. $17 and up. Bagley Wright Theatre, Seattle 

‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’
Delight in the performances of Tacoma Musical Playhouse’s experienced youth actors in their roles as the Peanuts gang, overcoming the commercialization of Christmas with a pageant, a spindly tree and a heartfelt speech. Dec. 18–24. $10. Tacoma Musical Playhouse, Tacoma

‘The Flight Before Xmas’ 
Being stuck in the airport is the opposite of feeling Christmas cheer. But sometimes you need to be a little late to truly appreciate what you’re rushing toward. Maggie Lee’s “Flight Before Xmas” is a modern holiday show about finding your way home and the family we discover for ourselves. Dec. 2–23. $20–$100. Recommended for ages 7 and older; no babes in arms. West of Lenin, Seattle

‘One Christmas Eve at Evergreen Mall’ 
Much like the TV holiday classic “A Christmas Story,” Olympia Little Theater’s “One Christmas Eve at Evergreen Mall” presents an all-American holiday. In eight vignettes, a series of characters, from Baby Jesus–snatching teens to a lonesome elf, connect in a shopping mall on Christmas Eve. Despite petty crime, arguments and shopping dilemmas, this holiday charmer promises to warm hearts on and offstage. Dec. 2–18. $9–$15. All ages. Olympia Little Theatre, Olympia

‘Christmastown: A Holiday Noir’ 
This film-noir-inspired thriller is back for the last time. Hardboiled detective Nick Holiday searches for the truth about Big Red and faces many un-holiday-like shenanigans involving a glamorous elf, a used-Christmas-tree salesman, a muckraking reporter and a quick-thinking cab driver. Dec. 2–Dec. 24. $36. Seattle Public Theater at the Green Lake Bathhouse, Seattle

‘A Christmas Story’ 
“A Christmas Story” somehow manages to capture a nostalgic feeling for a childhood Christmas unlike anything most of us born after Woodstock or west of the Rockies have ever experienced. Forever-9-year-old Ralphie collected cereal box tops, licked a frozen flagpole and nearly shot his eye out so we don’t have to. Dec. 2–24. $27. Tacoma Little Theatre, Tacoma

Up next: Comic romps and pantos