BEST BETS Thursday 11/30

CYPRESS

8 p.m.

Musical

The Young Americans have been entertaining the country since they were founded in 1962. This nonprofit group of performers reaches out to children from kindergarten through high school and helps them build self-esteem through performance. The group has traveled all over the world and has appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show and on “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson. They’ll be making a one-week stop in Orange County at the Cypress College Theatre. Enjoy dinner and watch a cast of more then 150 perform “The Magic of Christmas.”

* The Young Americans perform “The Magic of Christmas” at the Cypress College Theatre, 9200 Valley View St. Through Dec. 7. 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 2:30 p.m. Adults $18.50, seniors/students $15, children $12. Group rates are available. Dinner and show, $34. For reservations and tickets: (877) 927-5678.

IRVINE

8 p.m.

Music

Soprano Christine Brandes will join the San Francisco-based Philharmonic Baroque Orchestra for a performance of Bach’s festive “Jauchzet Gott in Allen Landen!” (Praise God in Every Land!). The holiday program, led by Nicholas McGegan, will include works for trumpets by Vivaldi, Torelli and Corelli. The concert is part of the Eclectic Orange Festival sponsored by the Philharmonic Society.

* Philharmonic Baroque Orchestra featuring Christine Brandes, Irvine Barclay Theatre, 4242 Campus Drive. 8 p.m. $29 to $34. (949) 854-4646.

COSTA MESA

8 p.m.

Music

Founded only four years ago, the Rossetti String Quartet has already earned high praise from critics and audiences in the United States and Europe. Named after the mid-19th century painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the quartet consists of violinists Nina Bodnar and Henry Gronnier, violist Thomas Diener and cellist Eric Gaenslen. They will play works by Beethoven, Ravel, Kodaly and Piazzolla.

* Rossetti String Quartet, Founders Hall, Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. 8 p.m. $36. (714) 556-2787.