A Philly Holiday Spectacular
Sung by Broadway stars and returning Philly favorites Nikki Renée Daniels & Jeff Kready, with extra festive special guests
Saturday, December 13 @ 3:00 pm
Sunday, December 14 @ 7:30 pm
Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center
300 South Broad StreetPhiladelphia, PA 19102
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It’s not the holidays until the Pops DECK THE HALLS!
Join us this December for not just one, but TWO performances of A Philly Holiday Spectacular. Conducted by our newly appointed Music Director, Chris Dragon, YOUR Philly Pops will take the stage to perform all of your holly jolly holiday favorites. Alongside them will be returning vocalists Nikki Renée Daniels & Jeff Kready, who absolutely brought the house down last year.
We’ll have some Philly favorites, like The Philly Pops Chorus, the St. Thomas Gospel Choir, The Philadelphia Boys’ Choir, and even a special surprise visit from the North Pole!
Whether you join us December 13th at 3pm or December 14th at 7:30pm, we can’t wait to have you join us for an afternoon of joy, music, and holiday cheer.
Featured Guests
Nikki Renée Daniels
Vocalist
Nikki Renée Daniels
Vocalist
Nikki Renée Daniels recently starred on Broadway as Lady Larken in Once Upon a Mattress, reprising her role from the City Center Encores! presentation. Other recent credits include the Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of Company, Hamilton (Angelica Schuyler) at the CIBC Center in Chicago, and The Book of Mormon (Nabulungi) on Broadway. Nikki has also been seen on Broadway as Clara in the Tony Award winning revival of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Fantine in Les Miserablés and in Nine, Aida, Little Shop of Horrors, The Look of Love, Promises, Promises, Anything Goes and Lestat. She made her New York City Opera debut as Clara in Porgy and Bess.
Other New York credits include playing Martha Jefferson in 1776 at City Center Encores! and Rose Lennox in The Secret Garden at David Geffen Hall.
Regionally, Nikki has been seen in The Music Man (Marian) at PCLO; Caroline, or Change (Emmie) at the Guthrie Theatre; Ray Charles Live! (Della B.) at Pasadena Playhouse; Anything Goes (Hope) at Williamstown Theatre Festival; Beauty and the Beast (Belle) at Sacramento Music Circus, and North Shore Music Theater; Ragtime (Sarah) at North Shore Music Theatre; Aida (Aida) and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Narrator) at ArtPark.
Her film and television credits include The Other Woman, “Billions,” “The Equalizer,” “Chappelle’s Show,” “Madam Secretary” and “The Sound of Music: Live.” Nikki has performed as a soloist with many symphony orchestras across the country and Canada, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, The Philly POPS, the New York Pops, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has also performed as a soloist at Carnegie Hall and holds a BFA from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music. Her debut CD, Home, is available on iTunes. For more information, please visit nikkireneedaniels.com and follow her on social media at @nikkireneesings.
Upcoming Events with Nikki Renée Daniels:
Jeff Kready
Vocalist
Jeff Kready
Vocalist
Jeff Kready was most recently seen on Broadway in The Great Gatsby, where he understudied and performed the role of Jay Gatsby. Jeff’s other Broadway credits include David in the 2022 Tony Award winning revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Company, stand-by for the “title” role of Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels in Tootsie, Monty Navarro in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Tony Elliot in Billy Elliot, Sunday in the Park with George, and Les Miserables, where he was the youngest person, at age 24, to ever perform the role of Jean Valjean on Broadway. His regional credits include Ragtime (New York City Center Encores), Sky Masterson in Guys & Dolls (Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera), Ted Hanover in Holiday Inn (Paper Mill Playhouse), Mr. Snow in Carousel (Connecticut Critics Circle Award nomination, Goodspeed Opera House), Tommy in Brigadoon (Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera), Jimmy Smith in Thoroughly Modern Millie (Paper Mill), Crumpet the elf in David Sedaris’s one-man-show Santaland Diaries (Hartford TheaterWorks), In This House (world premiere, Two River Theater), Attack of the Elvis Impersonators (Theater Row), and Tokio Confidential (Atlantic Theater Company).
On television, Mr. Kready was featured as Bert Healy the radio announcer in “Annie Live!” on NBC, starring Harry Connick Jr. He has also been seen on “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon), “The Code” (CBS), “The Good Fight” (CBS), “Elementary” (recurring, CBS), and “Boardwalk Empire” (HBO). He has performed as guest soloist with the Allentown Symphony, the Český Krumlov Music Festival (Czech Republic), the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, the Colorado Symphony, the Grand Teton Music Festival, the Long Bay Symphony, the Maui Pops Orchestra, the Omaha Symphony, the Seattle Chamber Music Society, the St. Louis Symphony, the Topeka Symphony, and can be heard on the album “The Broadway Tenors” with the UK’s National Symphony Orchestra (Jay Records). He was formerly an elementary school music teacher and is a graduate of Washburn University in his hometown, Topeka, KS. Jeff’s favorite roles are husband to Nikki and dad to Lena and Louise. For more information, please visit jeffkready.com and follow him on Instagram at @jk_ready.
Upcoming Events with Jeff Kready:
Christopher Dragon
Conductor
Christopher Dragon
Conductor
Australian conductor Christopher Dragon is the Music Director of Greensboro Symphony Orchestra, newly appointed Music Director of the Philly Pops and is the Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony. He joined the Colorado Symphony in the 2015/2016 Season as Associate Conductor – a position he held for four years. For three years prior, Dragon held the inaugural position of Assistant Conductor with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, which gave him the opportunity to work closely with Principal Conductor Asher Fisch.
Dragon has a versatile portfolio ranging from live-to-picture performances including Nightmare Before Christmas, Toy Story and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, a wide variety of collaborations with artists such as the Wu-Tang Clan, Cynthia Erivo and Joshua Bell, to standard and contemporary orchestral repertoire such as Danny Elfman’s Percussion Concerto; all areas of which he has become highly sought after. Christopher has become known for his charisma, high energy and affinity for a good costume, consistently delivering unforgettable performances that has made him an audience favourite.
Recent highlights include his sold-out symphony tour with Gregory Alan Isakov, which included debuts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Nashville Symphony, a new orchestral collaboration with Nathaniel Rateliff and his successful German debut with the WDR Funkhausorchester.
Christopher is highly sought after as a guest conductor and has worked with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Nashville Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Utah Symphony, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Chicago Philharmonic, Pacific Symphony, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfônica de Porto Alegre and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. In Australia, he has guest conducted the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. His 2015 debut performance at the Sydney Opera House with John Pyke and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was released on album by ABC Music and won an ARIA the following year
He has also conducted at numerous festivals including the Breckenridge and Bangalow Music Festivals, with both resulting in immediate re-invitations. At the beginning of 2016 Dragon conducted Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony as part of the Perth International Art Festival alongside Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
Christopher began his conducting studies in 2011 and was a member of the prestigious Symphony Services International Conductor Development Program in Australia under the guidance of course director Christopher Seaman. He has also studied with numerous distinguished conductors including Leonid Grin, Paavo and Neeme Jarvi at the Jarvi Summer Festival, Fabio Luisi at the Pacific Music Festival and conducting pedagogue Jorma Panula.
Upcoming Events with Christopher Dragon:
St. Thomas Gospel Choir
St. Thomas Gospel Choir
The St Thomas Gospel Choir currently consists of 40 Spirit-filled energetic musicians and singers. With evangelism being a very important factor in the choir’s music ministry, the Saint Thomas Gospel Choir shares their music at over 50 church services, programs, concerts and celebrations, of all kind, every year. The STGC has won and received many local and national awards for their contributions in Gospel Music. The St Thomas Gospel Choir can be heard digitally on several cd recordings and movie soundtracks. This is the St. Thomas Gospel Choir’s 15th year singing with the Holiday Pops Concerts at the Kimmel Center.
Upcoming Events with St. Thomas Gospel Choir:
Philly Pops Chorus
Philly Pops Chorus
The Philly Pops Chorus is an auditioned volunteer organization comprised of singers ranging from high school students to retired professionals. The chorus has performed with many professional artists including Lisa Vroman, Capathia Jenkins, Ashley Brown, Mandy Gonzalez, Lauren Kennedy, Rachel York, Hugh Panero, Liz Calloway, and The Von Trapp Family Children.
Upcoming Events with Philly Pops Chorus:
Philadelphia Boys Choir
Philadelphia Boys Choir
The iconic Philadelphia musical treasure . . .
Established in the 1960s, the Emmy-winning and Grammy-nominated Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale has toured the world, recorded with internationally renowned orchestras and soloists such as Luciano Pavarotti, appeared on national and international television, and received praise from critics and audiences worldwide. Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale is America’s preeminent boychoir and men’s chorale. It is known as “America’s Ambassadors of Song” and ranks among the best boy choirs in the world.
Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the early roots of the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale were set in the Philadelphia Public School system of the 1960’s. In 1968, Dr. Robert G. Hamilton took over the All Philadelphia Elementary School Boys Choir, founded by Dr. Carlton Jones Lake, and eventually made it an independent entity. Dr. Hamilton transformed the organization, through his passion for quality and his dedication to music, mentoring and to fostering goodwill around the world through music. Dr. Hamilton’s energy and vision guided the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale to its prominence as an internationally renowned musical icon. Dr. Hamilton remained artistic director for 37 years.
Today, the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale is under the direction of Jeffrey R. Smith, who is also an alumnus of both the Choir and the Chorale. Smith became Artistic Director and Conductor in 2004 and celebrates his 20th year as PBCC’s director during the 2024-2025 season.
One of the hallmarks of the Choir’s year is its annual goodwill tour. Under Dr. Hamilton’s leadership the Choir went on its first foreign tour to Mexico in 1968. Since that time, the Choir has represented Philadelphia and the United States in nearly 60 countries including Russia, China, England, France, Cuba, Ecuador, Kenya, Australia, India and many others. In 2025 the Choir will return to Africa for the first time in several decades, where it will spend 10 days in Ghana.
The choir has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Philadelphia Ballet, the Philly POPS, Opera Philadelphia, and the Curtis Institute. Venues have included the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, and Carnegie Hall in New York City.
The Emmy-winning and Grammy-nominated Philadelphia Boys Choir has performed under the batons of Maestros Eugene Ormandy, Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, Klaus Tennstedt, Wolfgang Sawallisch and Yannick Nézet-Séguin in concerts with the Philadelphia Orchestra. The Choir has appeared on Good Morning America, Saturday Night Live, The Today Show, and many other television programs. It is often featured to sing at Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Eagles games.
Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale alumni have gone on to enjoy distinguished careers in music, theater and the arts. Some notable alumni include Benj Pasek – Broadway Composer; Justin Hopkins – Opera Singer (Bass); Dave Lieberman – Food Network Personality and Chef; James A. Pierce, III – Actor; Jeffrey Smith – PBCC Artistic Director; Shawn Stockman – of the R&B group Boyz II Men; Ukee Washington – KYW-TV News Anchor; and Lawrence Zazzo – Opera Singer (Countertenor).
In 2011, the Philadelphia Girls Choir was founded, and in 2024 the Commonwealth Youth Choir was established under the PBGC umbrella, as a combined force from the former Pennsylvania Girlchoir and Keystone State Boychoir.
Upcoming Events with Philadelphia Boys Choir:
Chuck Gil/Santa
Special Guest
Chuck Gil/Santa
Special Guest
Chuck Gil has merged an outstanding stage career as an actor and director with a lucrative and professional voice acting business. He has used his over 30 years of teaching experience to fuel his continuing career as a voice actor. His studio is based in Southern New Jersey, just minutes outside his hometown of Philadelphia, PA. Chuck continues to act and direct regionally and is the artistic director and founder of IMAGINATION CREATION Theatre Productions. Chuck looks forward to working with you on variety of projects ranging from narrations to commercials, to bringing audio books to life and voicing characters in video games. Dedicated, professional, trusted and timely are traits that describe Charles J, Gill, Voice Actor.
Upcoming Events with Chuck Gil/Santa:
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