"Holiday Spirits" Museum Mile Tour

The Athens Historic House Museum Association has added yet another exciting twist to its annual Holiday Museum Mile Tour, scheduled for Saturday, December 10, 2011. In addition to theatrical performances at the T.R.R. Cobb House and Taylor-Grady House, a new historical vignette will be performed at the Church-Waddel-Brumby House.  This special holiday edition of Classic City Tours’ Museum Mile Tour will also include a guided tour of the Ware-Lyndon House, complete with period music and seasonal refreshments. During this festive tour of Athens’ four house museums, participants will experience an evening of theater, music, and delicious fun, along with an opportunity to learn more about the history of each house from professional tour guides.  The Lyndon-House Arts Center Holiday Market and Gallery Shop will also be open to tour-goers that evening.

Three short museum theater performances will be presented on the tour.  Each vignette is set during the Christmas holidays and reflects 19^th century holiday traditions.  The T.R.R. Cobb House vignette entitled “The Big Times,” is set in the 1850s and will present a glimpse of how enslaved families celebrated the holiday season.  The Taylor-Grady vignette, “A Standing Invitation,” is set in the 1880s. Produced by the Rose of Athens Theatre, “A Standing Invitation” will highlight the career of Henry W. Grady, and taps local talent including Hannah Broom, Emily Hoskins, and LaBau Bryan.  The Church-Waddel Brumby vignette, set in the late 1820s, presents the reminiscences and ruminations of former UGA president Moses Waddel.  This vignette, originally created by Thomas Horton of the USC Museum of Education with funding from the Kellogg Foundation, has been adapted by playwright Daniel Guyton for the AHHMA.  Each of these vignettes will delight audiences of all ages with different scenes of what life was like in these grand homes. 

The Holiday Museum Mile Tours will depart from the Ware-Lyndon House on Saturday, December 10 at 5 p.m., 6 p.m., and 7 p.m.  Tickets are $25 per person for adults and $15 for children under the age of 12.  Space is limited, so you are encouraged to reserve your seats early. 

More information and reservations are available through the Athens Welcome Center at 706.208.8687, or online at www.athenswelcomecenter.com.