The Diputació de València opens this Wednesday the Christmas square with music, storytelling, theater and children’s workshops, among other activities, as well as traditional stalls with Valencian products and an office of the Three Kings. Until the morning of January 5, the eve of the arrival of their majesties from the East, the provincial corporation will convert the plaza Manises in Valencia in a Christmas space conceived for a family audience, in which boys and girls will be the main protagonists.
The institution that directs Toni Gaspar has opted for these festivities by concentrating its cultural resources in the square in front of the headquarters, which from 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday 22nd until 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday 5 January will dress up for Christmas with decorations, traditional stalls with Typical Valencian products, sound and light effects and a wide range of performances by young companies and folk groups from municipalities in the province, giving a special role to this regional heritage. The municipalities of La Vall d’Albaida, El Carraixet, Tierra Bobal and Alto Turia and the towns of Alboraia, Sagunto, Buñol, Ademuz, Gátova, Cullera, Yátova and Chulilla will participate in the Christmas party of the Provincial Council.
During the opening day, the turning on the christmas lights and a concert by the Orfeón Gregorio Gea (7:00 p.m.) is scheduled, among other activities that will end with a pyromusical show on the Christmas Square stage. From that moment on, the square will be officially open as a Christmas cultural and leisure space with a schedule between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on ordinary days and special morning or evening days for holidays. On Saturday, January 1, the square will not open.
From the Nutcracker to the King’s Party
The children’s Christmas crafts workshops, music and storytelling will be the basis of a program that includes different special shows also aimed at a family audience. They highlight the ‘On are the monsters?’ from Disparatario, who will arrive in Plaza Manises on the afternoon of Christmas Day; ‘The Nutcracker’ by the Jove Companyia de Masters Ballet d’Ontinyent, which will take the stage on Monday 27 in the afternoon; the children’s musical ‘Charlie and the recycling factory’, scheduled for Thursday 30 at 5:00 pm; and ‘La fiesta del rey’ from La banda del drac, a medieval fantasy with songs, games and a lot of interaction with the public that will take place on the morning of New Year’s Eve.
Also for the morning of the 31st the celebration of the Children’s New Year, with bells included, and there will be adoration of the Magi under the title ‘Senyor Rei, ja estic ací’, which will be staged on the afternoon of Sunday, January 2 by the Grup de danses Les Folies de Carcaixent. And in the cultural sphere, the historical re-enactments ‘Saturnalia’ and ‘El sol invicto’ by Saguntum Civitas stand out, which will be staged in the Plaza de la Navidad on Wednesday 29 at 5:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., before the performance of Green Gos Batukada that will close the day’s schedule.
All the shows in the Plaza de la Navidad de la Diputación will take place in an open space, in order to guarantee the security protocol against the pandemic.
The three wise men
The Plaza de la Navidad de la Diputación will also have a real area in one of the courtyards of the Provincial Corporation, where the office of the Magi of the East, in which the royal emissaries will seal the letters that the girls and boys deliver with their dreams for the magical morning of January 6.
The real office will be open from December 27 to 30 and from January 2 to 4, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 4 to 8 p.m., while on December 31 and January 5, the schedule will be in the morning, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Other activities
All the activities programmed in the Plaza de la Navidad, coordinated by the Cultural Resources Service (SARC), the Tourism area and the Presidency of the Provincial Council, they will be free and include attractive proposals from different corners of the province, such as the Albaida puppets or the folkloric show ‘A Betlem Pastors!’ from Les Folies de Carcaixent (Sunday 26). At noon on Monday 27, the Museu Internacional de Titelles d’Albaida will arrive at the Plaza de la Navidad with a Christmas puppet workshop. And it will not be the only show of its kind, since Edu Borja’s puppets will go on stage the next day to represent ‘Geronto show’.
The Provincial Council exhibits, in the courtyard of the Palau dels Scala, the ceramic nativity scene from Manises de Antonio Cordero, made by hand in the weeks after confinement. In addition, the Hall of Respect in the same palace hosts the exhibition on the Guerrer de Moixent. Visiting hours for both the Bethlehem and the exhibition will be from December 22 to 30 and from January 2 to 5 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., while on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve the visits will be morning, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on Christmas day in the afternoon, from 4 to 8 p.m.
The sport activities, coordinated by the Youth and Sports area, will not be missing in the Plaza de la Navidad, which will receive the visit of the mascots of Valencia CF and Levante UD. On the afternoon of Tuesday 28, between 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., Valencia CF coaches will offer a preparatory session, first for boys and girls from 6 to 9 years old and then for the 10 to 14 age group. On Wednesday 29 at noon there are scheduled children’s workshops with the Federació de Pilota Valenciana, while the Levante UD mascots, Blau and Grana, will arrive at the plaza at noon on Tuesday, January 4.
Finally, on December 28 and 29, the Cope Y Zero Wave they will broadcast live from the Plaza de la Navidad. The program ‘Mediodía Cope’ will be broadcast on Tuesday 28 from Plaza Manises, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. A day later, Onda Cero will bring its space ‘Más de Uno València’ to the square, at its usual time between 12.40 and 2 p.m.
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