The Hallé unveils a sparkling Christmas season at The Bridgewater Hall

Opening the festive season with the glittering world of Tchaikovsky, the Hallé presents a vibrant, abridged score of The Nutcracker conducted by Maria Seletskaja, as the orchestra navigates the ‘Chinese Dance’, the ‘Trepak’ and the ‘Arabian Dance’ with elegance and energy as part of its beloved early evening Rush Hour series.

Beginning with Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances from his unfinished opera, Prince Igor, the enchanting programme also pays homage to the extraordinary rescue work of Lyadov and Rimsky-Korsakov, who orchestrated the piece overnight using pencil and gelatine to protect their notes.

On Sat 6 Dec, the Hallé and Hallé Choir combine once again to perform Handel’s timeless masterpiece, led by GRAMMY-winner Jeannette Sorrell alongside a stellar cast opera stars, including mezzo-soprano Alice Coote and bass-baritone, Henry Waddington.

Performed by the Hallé almost every year since 1859, the cherished oratorio enjoys a renewed vitality in Sorrell’s universally acclaimed interpretation, which highlights its narrative momentum and emotional clarity with a whirl of welcome theatricality.

Hosted by popular children’s TV presenter Abby Cook, the Hallé’s Christmas Family Concert returns with a dazzling programme of festive favourites performed by the Hallé Youth Training Choir, conducted by Euan Shields.

Audiences are invited to grab their jingle bells and bring the yuletide spirit as the ensemble stage a friendly, fabulous introduction to orchestral music, from film tunes and classic melodies to festive entertainment and sing-a-long fun, with free family activities in the foyer from 1.30pm.

Promising ‘a festive extravaganza bursting with toe-tapping classics’, this year’s Christmas Cracker offers another sparkling blend of seasonal smash-hits and cinematic wonder, as Stephen Bell leads vocalists Katie Bell and Oliver Tompsett alongside the Hallé Workplace and Ancoats Community Choirs on Fri 12 Dec.

Featuring timeless favourites like Merry Christmas Everyone, All I Want for Christmas, Last Christmas, Driving Home for Christmas and music from The Polar Express, Christmas Cracker is a blockbuster affair that revels in the feel-good spirit of the season.

The Hallé’s much-loved Carol Concerts return for 2025, combining traditional yuletide songs with full orchestral arrangements to create a warm and delightfully festive environment that glows with spellbinding splendour and charming tradition.

Offering a peaceful and uplifting reprieve from December’s high-season frenzy, these concerts bring friends, families and solo visitors together in an intimate yet jubilant occasion for all ages.

Across Sat 20 and Sun 21 Dec, the Hallé performs the scores from magical children’s films The Snowman and Shaun the Sheep: The Flight Before Christmas in real time, as the excitement unfolds on the big screen.

From the soaring magic of Walking in the Air to the playful festive chaos of Shaun and his flock, this unmissable double-bill returns as a staple of the Hallé’s winter calendar.

Channelling the glitz, glamour and irresistible swing of the roaring twenties, the Hallé transports audiences back to the Jazz Age for the finest Twixmas party in Manchester on Tue 30 Dec.

Backed by the full orchestra, singers Vanessa Haynes, Joe Stilgoe and Strictly Come Dancing’s Tommy Blaize join saxophone and jazz clarinet virtuoso Giacomo Smith for a night of decadent dancing – where 1920s attire is highly encouraged – set to classics including High Society, Stormy Weather, Top Hat, Puttin’ On the Ritz, Cabaret and The Joint is Jumpin’.

On Sat 3 Jan, the Hallé ushers in the new year with a flourish of waltzes and polkas, as Stephen Bell and soprano Soraya Mafi lead an uplifting afternoon concert inspired by the grandeur of Vienna’s ornate ballrooms.

Showcasing favourites including Strauss’s Thunder and Lightning Polka and Lehar’s radiant Vilya, this annual tradition welcomes 2026 with joy, grace and sophistication.