Image courtesy of the artist

After more than 30 years of touring and with an almost cultlike following of mountain-sprung funk fairies gamboling along with them, Big Head Todd and the Monsters are a jam band, which is a very American thing. Their music—distilled by determination, a deep groove and driving around the mountain West and Left Coast in a van called “the Colonel”—is pretty, pretty good. They can still belt out tuneage like “Resignation Superman” and cover classics like Howlin' Wolf's “Smokestack Lightning” with authenticity and rolling thunder (no, not the band, you silly Deadhead!). Anyway, they stop in Burque on their annual winter tour and play at Route 66 Casino Hotel's Legends Theater on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 8pm. Tickets for this all-ages space jam range in price from $28 to $59, so check it out; your seasonal cold will never feel the same. (August March)

Image courtesy of Broadway World

Waitress is the Broadway musical version of an indelibly deep dish, darkly delightful American tale originally told by Adrienne Shelly, an American actor, director and screenwriter. Shelly died almost 15 years ago and this project is clearly one of her brightest legacies. The music for this version of the narrative was written by Grammy Award nominee Sara Bareilles, an accomplished singer-songwriter in her own right. Experience this memorable story of life and love in small town America when the touring show hits Popejoy Hall on the UNM campus as part of the esteemed venue's Popejoy Presents series, beginning on Thursday, Dec. 12 and Friday, Dec. 13 at 7:30pm and continues over the weekend with performances on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2pm and 8pm as well as on Sunday, Dec. 15 at 1pm and 6:30pm. Tickets for this sweetly sung story range in price from $48 to $93 and it's probably not something you want to take children to, not because of the subject matter, but because we couldn't sit through the Music Man until we were 17 years old. (August March)

Image by Pat Berrett

The Christmas story of the three Magi from the East is told through dance as the National Institute of Flamenco brings together a multigenerational cast of over one hundred from Yjastros, the Conservatory of Flamenco Arts and Tierra Adentro for their presentation of La Estrella: A Flamenco Journey of the Kings’ Quest. A run of four performances begins Friday, Dec. 13 at 7pm at Rodey Theater on UNM Main Campus. Tickets range from $17 to $30. For more information and tickets to this all-ages performance, see nifnm.org. (Clarke Condé)

Image via Pixabay

Kwanzaa is a week-long holiday celebrating African culture, heritage and unity in the US and other nations of the African dispora. Started in 1966 and meaning “first fruits” in Swahili, it recognizes seven Kwanzaa principles of Nguzo Saba: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. The New Mexico Humanities Council celebrates these seven principles at their Kwanzaa Workshop: Make & Take Kinara (Candelabra), on Saturday, Dec. 14 from noon to 2pm at the Council's office. This free, all-ages event not only teaches how to make a kinara candlelabra, but also explores celebration and observation of the holiday. This workshop is a good way to expand your (event) horizons and learn more about the world we live in, so get tickets by visiting eventbrite.com (Dan Rayne Pennington)