As Santa and Mrs. Claus, a husband-wife duo who have a long history of entertaining star during twice-daily “The Christmas Musical” shows at Surrey Holiday Lights.
Gillian Campbell, 81, and husband Edward, 84, lead a 30-minute sing-along on the North Pole Stage, at 5 and 7 p.m. daily. The event will now close Dec. 23, not Jan. 2 as originally planned.
At Surrey Civic Plaza, “the musical has really been going over well, and has been a highlight at Surrey Holiday Lights,” said event producer John Donnelly.
The two stars of the show have played the Claus couple over the past 30 years, at seasonal events include Surrey Tree Lighting Festival and others in the region.
“Their entertaining experience goes back over 50 years, as they have performed in other capacities for even Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Princess Diana,” Donnelly noted.
“Edward and Gillian have hearts so large that they have made a point to volunteer their talents at St. Paul’s Hospital and McDonald’s House to keep spreading the joy,” he added. “They both feel so blessed to be able to give back and spread the magic of Christmas.”
Gillian Campbell is inducted into the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame for becoming “a modern-day personification of the legendary Klondike Kate – saloon sweetheart of the Klondike Gold Rush in Canada’s far North in the late 1890s,” says a bio on bcentertainmenthalloffame.com. “As such, she is now without question the most requested performer for conference and corporate audiences visiting Western Canada, and her name is familiar to event planners around the world.”
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Rainy-day start today for the new Surrey Holiday Lights, which illuminates city hall plaza until Jan. 2 (fee to get in).
Here's what it looks like inside the tent, set up for last week's Tree Lighting Festival.
STORY: https://t.co/9jsq9557pB
(Pix: @SurreyLights/ Brandon Artis) pic.twitter.com/ywOhWx5mkC— Tom Zillich (@TomZillich) November 25, 2021
Tickets are required to visit Surrey Holiday Lights, which opened Nov. 25 at Surrey Civic Plaza, where the city’s annual Surrey Tree Lighting Festival was held on Saturday, Nov. 20.
MRG Group’s “Immersive Lights & Music Experience” features a tent full of Christmas-y exhibits, including the decades-old animatronic Woodward’s window display of “Santa and His Elves,” plus a gingerbread village, holiday market and a North Pole Stage featuring “The Christmas Musical,” starring Mrs. Claus.
The event’s outdoor Snowflake Stage sits beside Surrey’s 60-foot Christmas tree, a Tunnel of Light, reindeer, polar bears and other illuminated features that aim to transport ticketholders to “a winter light wonderland.”
An Enchanted Eats area includes food trucks with mini donuts, twisted potatoes, crepes, savoury meals and snacks, plus hot chocolate, coffee, craft beers and other beverages.
Event details are posted to surreyholidaylights.com.
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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