Saturday, December 5th, 2009, from 5:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
University Cultural Center

Discover Local Treasures From Peter Madcat Ruth to PuppetArt

Harmonica virtuoso Peter Madcat Ruth
at Avalon Bakery

Celebrate our city’s diverse holiday traditions amid the state’s premier arts and cultural institutions, historic churches and neighborhood galleries, providing the perfect backdrop for a festive evening packed full of performances to enjoy with family and friends – all free of charge.  Horse-drawn carriage rides, carolers, music, dance, children’s activities, arts & crafts, shopping, and holiday delectables are all part of the evening’s festivities.  Over 45 different venues offer special programming to welcome Noel Night visitors during this Cultural Center-wide “Open House.” New this year to Noel Night is a handful of small retail businesses, including:

•    City Bird, now open in its brand new space at 460 W. Canfield, where visitors can shop for cool holiday gifts from more than 50 local and regional designers.
•    Your biggest decision of the evening will be “savory” or “sweet” at Good Girls Go to Paris Crepes located in the Park Shelton, who is making its Noel Night debut by featuring acoustic guitar music by Chris Flynn.
•    Books make great stocking stuffers and Leopold’s Books, Midtown’s newest independent bookstore, will have plenty for sale.  You can even make your own holiday book as part of their featured Noel Night activity!
•    Motor City Brewing Works, Midtown’s beloved brewpub, will be serving up gourmet pizzas and their signature beers along with music from Ann Arbor-based dance-pop septet, My Dear Disco at 7:45 p.m.
•    University Prep Science & Math Middle School is celebrating its first year in its new location at the Detroit Science Center and will offer tours of its facility on Noel Night.  Children will also have the opportunity to build air racers with Project Lead the Way.

Over 100 performances are sure to bring the sounds of the season to life, including Noel Night favorites like Detroit R&B soulstress, Thornetta Davis, who will be performing at the Detroit Public Library at 7:45 p.m.  Ballet Renaissance and its 40+ dance troupe will also perform at the Detroit Science Center at 7:15 p.m.  Roots music duo, Daisy May and Seth Bernard, will perform with Peter “Madcat” Ruth at Avalon International Breads at 6:45, 7:30 and 8:15 p.m.  The Suzuki Royal Oak Camerata will perform from its holiday string repertoire at 6:00 p.m. at the Detroit Institute of Arts, as well as the CutTime Players, a versatile ensemble of eight world-class musicians from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, performing holiday classical favorites at 8:00 p.m.  Noel Night is also pleased to introduce these new performers to our growing audience:

“Sleeping Beauty,” at the Detroit Science Center

•    Renaissance woman, Lonette McKee, famous for her film and music career, will present a dramatic reading of her short story, “A Holiday Story,” at the Museum of African American History at 7:00 p.m.
•    New York-based jazz vocalist Allan Harris will perform the music of Nat King Cole at the First Congregational Church at 7:45 p.m.
•    Lansing-based Steppin’ In It performs old time country swing and blues at the Scarab Club at 8:15 p.m.
•    Detroit’s very own PuppetART will put on the marionette ballet, “Sleeping Beauty,” at the Detroit Science Center at 6:30 and 7:45 p.m.

•    New York-based Uncommon Temperament, a bold new baroque collective, will perform early music with a “wild and organic” approach at the Detroit Institute of Arts at 6:30 p.m.
•    Detroit singer/songwriter Carolyn Striho will perform in the Barnes & Noble Bookstore Cafe at 8:00 p.m.
•    Actors from Wayne State University’s Bonstelle Theatre will perform vignettes from “A Christmas Carol” at the Detroit Institute of Arts at 5:30 p.m.
•    The University of Detroit Jesuit Show Choir performs at 8:00 p.m. at the Detroit Public Library.  This performance is sponsored by the Colin Hubbell Fund.
•    New Horizons, a band of music students enrolled in the Michigan State University (MSU) Community Music School (CMS), will perform at 8:15 p.m. at the Detroit Historical Museum.  CMS now has a new facility on Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit.

Another Noel Night treat for families will be a rare visit from two of Santa’s reindeer, on a special layover from the North Pole at the Detroit Science Center – a perfect holiday photo opportunity.  A variety of Christmas trees will also be for sale outside of Wayne State’s Old Main Building, located between Warren Avenue and Hancock Street from 5:00-9:30 p.m. – another Noel Night first!  Local Midtown resident, Brian Bliss, comes from a family with a long history of selling Christmas trees in southeast Michigan, and will be able to help you select the perfect tree for your home. A variety of species – pine, spruce, fir – and sizes from table-top to full-grown will be up for grabs. Boughs and grave blankets will also be for sale. Orders will also be taken on site if you do not see what you want, or in the event that he sells out.

Noel Night will offer a special opportunity for visitors to catch the latest exhibition at Wayne State’s Museum of Anthropology, “Mythical Foundations/Material Consequences: A Look at Archaeological Research at the Workers Row House, Corktown, Detroit.” The exhibition presents work resulting from three seasons of excavations in a historic city neighborhood by WSU faculty, students, and the Greater Corktown Development Corporation.  The Workers Row House is a small working class tenement built in 1849 and is perhaps the oldest wooden structure of its kind still standing in Detroit.  Please join our Corktown neighbors as they celebrate the Workers Row House Project in a special party in the lobby of Old Main – all are welcome.

Re:View Contemporary Gallery, located in Willy’s Overland Lofts at 444 W. Willis, is hosting another not-to-be-missed exhibition, Re:Collect, a group exhibit showcasing small works by twenty Detroit area artists.  Re:View’s participation in Noel Night also marks the gallery’s first year anniversary.  Be sure to also take a tour of Willy’s Overland Lofts, one of Midtown’s centerpiece residential developments located in the West Willis Village.

A perennial favorite, the Bank of America Ice Scraper Challenge, returns to the DIA Plaza.  Sculpture students from Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies compete under the direction of world-class ice sculptor, Tayana Raukar, who will also create her own sculpture. Discover the best gifts of the season at the area’s galleries and gift shops, including special Noel Night-only opportunities like the annual College for Creative Studies Student and Alumni Art Sale and the All-World Market at the International Institute.  The Detroit Artists Market’s Annual Art for the Holiday Show is another favorite shopping experience featuring all hand-made items by local artists offering a wide range of products and price points.  Special holiday shopping opportunities also exist for children at the Plymouth United Church of Christ with their Children’s Only Gift Shoppe with complementary gift wrap.  Make sure to not miss other unique shopping and opportunities at these other participating Noel Night venues:  Bob’s Classic Kicks, Bureau of Urban Living, The Black Dress, Sole Sisters, Flo Boutique, and the Spiral Collective.

The evening’s festivities conclude with the annual community sing-along, led by the Salvation Army Band at the Bank of America Bandstand on Woodward Avenue.  There is no better way to celebrate the holiday season than with thousands of metro Detroiter’s singing Christmas carols in this time-honored Noel Night tradition.  Woodward Avenue also features an outdoor Food Court offering a variety of tasty treats like hot roasted almonds, Kettle Korn, and homemade soups.  Full dinner options are available at Cass Café, Café DIA, the Science Center Café, First Congregational Church, The International Institute, Motor City Brewing Works, Good Girls Go To Paris Crepes, Plymouth United Church of Christ, The Scarab Club, Traffic Jam and Snug, and other area restaurants.

Noel Night activities take place in and around Midtown Detroit’s Cultural Center institutions, located between Ferry and Willis, on the north and south, and between Cass Avenue and St. Antoine on the west and east.  Woodward Avenue is closed to traffic between Warren and Ferry.  There is free shuttle service that runs continually between participating venues, as well as plenty of parking in area lots and structures.  Noel Night visitors should consider using Wayne State’s Parking Structure 6 located at 61 Putnam between Woodward and Cass Avenue, as well as Parking Structure 8 located at 91 West Forest between Woodward and Cass Avenue.  Admission to Noel Night is free.

Noel Night is sponsored by Bank of America, DTE Energy, the Colin Hubbell Memorial Fund, Trent Design, Inland Press, WNIC, WWJ Newsradio 950, and WDET.  The University Cultural Center Association, a nonprofit planning and development organization that supports the physical maintenance and revitalization of Midtown Detroit, produces the event.  Call 313.577.5088 or visit http://detroitmidtown.com/05/noelnight for more information.