Holiday Express, in a concert setting.
This holiday season, Holiday Express will bring high-spirited holiday music to 81 homeless shelters, psychiatric hospitals, developmental centers and other places where live music is seldom heard. And it won’t charge the facilities a penny. About 150 musicians donate their services to make those 81 shows happen — about 50 of them will be at each of these benefits — and many hundreds more work behind the scenes.
The Shore-based group, a non-profit organization now in its 23rd year, gets some of the money it needs to support its mission from the annual benefit concerts it presents. This year there will be two, Dec. 10 at Prudential Hall of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, and Dec. 17 at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank. Each show will feature holiday standards such as “White Christmas,” “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” and Chuck Berry’s “Run Rudolph Run,” plus visits by Frosty the Snowman, the Grinch and Santa.
Red Bank tickets are $25 to $125; visit TheBasie.org. Newark tickets are $29 to $54; visit NJPAC.org.
For information about Holiday Express, visit holidayexpress.org.
