Local artisans, a local author, running reindeer, a lot of ugly sweaters, and, of course, appearances by St. Nick are among the guaranteed sights at this year's eagerly anticipated Christmas in LeClaire weekend, with holiday-themed events and family activities scheduled at more than a dozen downtown locales between December 7 and 9.

Recently described by GratefulWeb.com as “the true definition of road warriors, boasting over 20 shows a month,” the eternally touring reggae artists of Jon Wayne & the Pain play a December 6 concert at Davenport's Redstone Room, sharing the exhilarating gifts that led ThePier.org to praise their output that “crosses genres with tracks that build from dub loops and explode into powerful party anthems.”

On December 7, Moline's TaxSlayer Center will be providing country-music-star-power squared, as the venue hosts an evening with touring sensations Cole Swindell and Dustin Lynch, young country artists who have collectively sold tens of millions of units and have landed a dozen single on the Top 10 of Billboard's Country Airplay charts.

Performing in a rare Polyrhythms' Third Sunday Jazz Workshop & Matinée concert that actually falls on the month's second Sunday, the acclaimed artists of the Laurence Hobgood Trio take the stage at Davenport's Redstone Room on December 9, a group lauded by the Chicago Tribune for delivering “power without noise, energy without haste, drama without overstatement.”

Christmas can be magical. It’s a time for love, cheer, and miracles. And all three of those holiday attributes are currently being dished up at the Black Box Theatre in its production of It Had to Be You.

Ah, Thanksgiving. A time of food, friends, family … more freaking movies than anyone should have to review over one long weekend …

The members of the band Giallows, who were slated to perform on Tuesday, 13 November, at 8PM at Rozz-Tox (2108 3^rdAve, Rock Island), have watched Hell blaze across the streets of the Quad Cities.

Well, not Hell, exactly. That may be overstating matters. And nothing purgatorial or bardo-esque, for that matter. But they’ve seen some stuff occur. They also seemed to agree that they would never really agree on the nature of such stuff — so they might as well play music.

Lauded by Broadway World as “a stunning new holiday musical” and by The Independent as “a beautiful story” that's “fun for the whole family,” the touring Christmastime production Noël: The Musical brings seasonal messages and beautiful music to Davenport's Adler Theatre on December 2, and with a depth that led The Independent to call it “a feel-good show, but with a storyline touching on the very real issues of homelessness, bullying, loneliness, and the materialism of the holidays.”

With its latest musical described by Bold Life magazine as “some kind of wonderful” and by the Asheville Citizen-Times as “an old-fashioned holiday greeting card come to life,” Quad City Music Guild brings a timeless holiday treat to the stage in its November 29 through December 2 run of Miracle in Bedford Falls, a brand-new theatrical imagining of the Frank Capra classic It's a Wonderful Life.