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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 25, 2008
Contact: Molly Dannenmaier, 409-765-7834
Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Galveston Historical Foundation
502 20th Street, Galveston, TX 77551
For more press releases and backgrounders, along with a photo gallery of downloadable, press-ready Dickens photographs, go to http://www.galvestonhistory.org/Dickens_Press.asp
Tickets Still Available to Some Galveston’s Dickens Festival Special Events
Galveston’s Famous Victorian Festival Still has Room at its Handbell Concerts, English Country Breakfasts, Christmas by Candlelight Menard House Tour, and Bishop’s Palace Holiday Tours
Visitors can extend the fun of Dickens on The Strand, Galveston Historical Foundation’s long-running and popular Victorian holiday festival, by attending one or all of the special events surrounding the festival on the first weekend in December.
Tickets are still available for Dickens guests, in costume or otherwise, to enjoy hand-bell concerts at Texas’ oldest German Catholic Curch building; English Country breakfasts at the Ashton Villa Ballroom (back in service after Ike’s flooding); the lavish Traditional Dickens Feast at the Garten Verein dancing pavilion on Friday, and candlelight tours of the Island’s most significant 19th –century mansions.
Advance tickets to these events are required, and may be purchased on line at www.dickensonthestrand.org. This year’s lineup of special events is as follows.
Traditional Dickens Feast
7 p.m. Friday, December 5
1880 Garten Verein, 2704 Avenue O
$65 per person (open seating)
reserved table for eight: $600; for ten: $750 Sold out
Feast on fine food and enjoy a cheerful evening in the festive atmosphere of the 1880 Garten Verein German dancing pavilion. Queen Victoria and her entourage head the table, and, between courses, readings from A Christmas Carol will be presented by New York actor Al Hyslop. Reservations are required, and must be made by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, December 3.
Approximate length: 3 hours.
English Country Breakfasts
9 a.m. Saturday, December 6
10 a.m. Sunday, December 7
1859 Ashton Villa Ballroom, 2328 Broadway
$25 per person
Begin a Dickens of a day with a hearty English Country Breakfast served in the ballroom of Ashton Villa, Galveston’s famous restored antebellum mansion. Restoration tours of this grand home’s first floor are included. Reservations required, and must be made by 5 p.m. on Thursday, December 4.
Approximate length: 1 1/2 hours.
Christmas by Candlelight
5, 6 and 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 6
1838 Menard House, 1605 33rd Street
$10 per person
Reservations required.
Galveston’s oldest home, the Michel B. Menard House, was built in 1838 by one of Galveston’s founding fathers. The dining room of this grand Greek revival home will be set for a special caroling party as might have been held there in 1850. Costumed guides conduct tours, seasonal music is performed and holiday refreshments are served.
Approximate length: 1 hour.
Holiday Handbell Concerts
5:30 and 7 p.m.
Friday, December 5
1859 St. Joseph Church, 2202 Avenue K
$5 per person
Reservations required.
Enjoy the sounds of the holiday season in a historic gothic revival church built in 1859. The oldest German Catholic Church in Texas and the oldest wooden church building in Galveston, St. Joseph’s was built by German immigrants and dedicated in April, 1860. The delicately painted sanctuary offers a serene setting for the playing of classic holiday carols by traditional handbell choirs.
Approximate length: 45 minutes.
1892 Bishop's Palace Holiday Tour
Saturday, December 6
5:30, 6:30 and 7:30 p.m.
Located at 1402 Broadway
$12 per person.
Reservations required.
A special tour with music of the 1892 Bishop's Palace, designated one of 100 most outstanding buildings in the United States by the American Institute of Architects. Approximate length: 1 hour.
Group Tours
Reservations for groups of 20 or more require a 25 percent deposit paid at time of reservation. Additional reservations can be added, if space is available, with additional deposit paid at time of added reservation. All reservations require full payment at time of reservation. For Group Tour reservations or information, please contact Jami Durham (409) 765-7834.
Festival Tickets
Group Advance Price: Advance Price for groups of 20 or more: One-day ticket: $8 ($12 day of the event).
Individual Advance Price, no minimum number: One-day ticket: $10 ($12 day of the event).
Tickets are available on line and at all area Kroger Food Stores.
Tickets are half price at the gate for those in Victorian-era costumes.
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