City of Richmond Announces Holiday Schedule

City government offices, including City Hall, will be closed on Monday, December 23, Tuesday, December 24, and Wednesday, December 25 for the Christmas holiday. City offices will reopen at regular business hours on Thursday, December 26, 2013. This closing includes all branches of the Richmond Public Libraries, which will open on their normal schedule Saturday, December 21, but are closed December 23 – 25.

The City’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities will open the following locations from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Thursday, December 26 through Friday, January 3, 2014, with the exception of Sunday, December 29, Wednesday, January 1, and Sunday, January 5.

Battery Park Community Center                           2803 Dupont Circle

Bellemeade Community Center                          1800 Lynnhaven Avenue

Blackwell Community Center                               300 East 15^th Street

Hickory Hill Community Center                            3000 East Belt Boulevard

Hotchkiss Community Center                              701 East Brookland Park Boulevard

Humphrey Calder Community Center                 414 North Thompson Street

Powhatan Community Center                              5051 Northampton Street

Randolph Community Center                               1415 Grayland Avenue

All sites will resume normal hours on Monday, January 6, 2014.

Refuse collection will follow its normal schedule for December 23 and December 24; however no collection will occur on December 25. Refuse collection will resume on Thursday, December 26 and continue through Friday, December 27.

The East Richmond Road Convenience Center and Hopkins Road Transfer Stations are also closed December 23 - 25. Each facility will resume its normal schedule on Thursday, December 26.

Richmond Animal Care and Control (RAC&C) is normally closed on Mondays and Tuesdays and will also be closed on Wednesday, December 25. RAC&C will operate using their regular adoption hours throughout the remainder of the holiday season.

For more information on City services and schedules, please visit www.RichmondGov.com.

Randolph Community Center Presents: "Bak n da Day" Concert Cafe

Join the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities as we continue celebrating the holiday season with local singing group "Bak n da Day."  

Celebrate the Holiday Season!

Carols at Noon is a free holiday concert series in partnership with Richmond Public Schools.  Featuring school choirs from across the city, each concert is expected to last approximately 20 minutes.

City to Host Annual Holiday Opera

The Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities will host the beloved children’s opera “Amahl and the Night Visitors” on Sunday, December 8 at 4 p.m. at the Landmark Theater located at 6 North Laurel Street.

One of Richmond’s longest running traditions; the Department has offered free performances of this opera since the 1960s.  Pegged as the unofficial kick-off to the holiday festivities in the Richmond area, “Amahl and the Night Visitors” is perhaps the most recognized holiday opera experience for children of all ages. “This outstanding production exposes youngsters and adults to the medium of opera and brings together diverse communities to share in a common holiday tradition,” says Dr. Norman C. Merrifield, director of Richmond’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Facilities.

The opera was written in 1951 by Gian-Carlo Menotti and focuses on Amahl, a young peasant shepherd boy with a talent for embellishing fact with a varnish of fantasy.  As the opera opens, Amahl is very excited because he has seen a truly strange and wondrous star outside, one with a long tail the likes of which he has never seen. His Mother dismisses his news, but a knock on their door reveals three kings who are following that very star.  The story unfolds as shepherds come from far and near to observe the visitors, and ultimately leads to the magic of a Christmas miracle.

Staging director George C. Macklin, Jr. will be retiring after a 49-year affiliation with the production, having started as King Balthazar before taking over the director’s chair.  He is joined by assistant director Charmaine McGilvary and music director Diana Covington Greer.  Principal cast members include Matthew Barbieri as Amahl, Bekah Hughes Davis as his Mother, J. David Clatterbuck, Raymond Elmore, and Ben Miller as the Kings Kaspar, Balthazar, and Melchior respectively, and Stanley Fountain as the Page.

This event is free to the public.  Doors will open at 3:30 p.m. and no reservations are necessary. For more information, please call (804) 646-1031.