Royal Albert Hall

Kensington’s grand Italianate music hall is quite possibly the most iconic place in London to enjoy a Christmassy concert, and as usual it’s got a huge variety of them on this year, from camped up festivities hosted by queen of pop herself, Kylie Minogue (‘An Audience with Kylie’ on Dec 1) to a wholesome evening with Jamie Cullum, (‘The Pianoman at Christmas’ on Dec 8). Family-friendly festive fun comes in the form of the Cinematic Sinfonia’s ‘Home Alone in Concert’ from Dec 2, while ‘My Orchestral Christmas Adventure’ on Dec 10 is a perfect way to introduce little ones to classical music.  And then there’s the big one, ‘Carols at the Royal Albert Hall’, from Dec 16-24. Can you really say you’ve ‘done’ Christmas in London if you’ve not experienced the full majesty and power of ‘Oh Come All Ye Faithful’ belted out by over 5,000 carollers at the Royal Albert Hall? Not in our view, you can’t. 

The mighty Canadian contemporary circus company Cirque du Soleil brings a new version of one of its early shows, 1994's 'Alegría', to London. Meaning 'happiness' or 'joy' in Spanish, 'Alegría' features a 62-strong cast of clowns, acrobats, aerialists, fire-knife dancers, musicians and other performers, all tied together by a loose theme of the old and new orders and celebrating the energy of youth. Although ‘Alegría’ is no stranger to London – it was last seen here in 2012 – this is the European premiere of the all-new 2019 version, which features an expanded ensemble and refreshed visuals, costumes and setpieces. Still, you can essentially expect more of the same: that is to say, slick spectacle, sense-assaulting music and costumes and raised adrenaline levels.