Best Bets: Thursday 12/24

11am & 2pm: Dance

This year, two very familiar and very different stagings of “The Nutcracker” have arrived in major venues just in time for Christmas and will stay through the weekend. Credited to company directors Natalia Kasatkina and Vladimir Vasiliov, the Moscow Classical Ballet “Nutcracker” dispenses with Christmas cheer in favor of hard-sell virtuosity. (See review, Page TK.) In contrast, the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago staging is traditional in nearly every way except for its American setting. Indeed, the late Robert Joffrey incorporated many different “Nutcracker” traditions in his 1987 production for his company. And pleasure in those traditions--how they complement one another, even how they clash--helps give his “Nutcracker” great sophistication as well as splendor.

* Moscow Classical Ballet, Pasadena Civic Auditorium, 300 E. Green St., Pasadena. Today, 11 a.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. $10 (children) to $56. (626) 449-7360.

* Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Today, 2 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. $20 to $65. (714) 556-2787.

Noon: Skating & Salsa

Need a break from the Muzak-world Christmas carols? On Christmas Eve day at the Pershing Square 50-by-80-foot ice skating rink in downtown L.A., salsa diva Susie Hansen will provide the tunes for the lunchtime skating crowd. Glide along, dance along or sing along.

* Salsa by Susie Hansen, noon to 2 p.m. at the Pershing Square ice rink, 5th and Olive streets. Skating continues daily Monday through Friday, noon to 9 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. $5 admission, $2 skate rental. (213) 847-4970.

8 pm: Sing-Along

Judy Wolman’s popular “Sing! Sing! Sing!” series looks to the holidays at this old-fashioned, family-oriented “Candle Light Carols” event. Wolman provides words and music. You provide voice and spirit. Wolman returns on Sunday with favorite tunes in a program she calls “The Best of Sing! Sing! Sing!”

* “Candle Light Carols,” Jazz Bakery, 3233 Helms Ave., West Los Angeles. $15. (310) 271-9039. Also “Best of Sing! Sing! Sing!,” Sunday, 4 p.m. $15. (310) 271-9039.

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FREEBIE: The annual Los Angeles County Holiday Celebration occupies the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion from 3 to 9 p.m. For more information, see story, Page 52.