Candlelight: Christmas Special Featuring The Nutcracker & More

The Listeso String Quartet brings a Christmas special to The Circuit Center on Saturday, December 19, with two performances that evening: one at 6:30 PM and another at 8:45 PM. The program centers on Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, reimagined for a string quartet and played alongside other holiday classics. It's a full hour of music, and the whole room is lit by thousands of flameless LED candles, so the lighting is as much a part of the experience as the quartet itself.

The Nutcracker takes the lead, but it's not the only thing on the bill. The set pulls from a wide range of composers—Felix Mendelssohn, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Émile Waldteufel, George Frideric Handel, and Claude Debussy—so you'll hear a mix of holiday staples and a few less-familiar pieces. The Listeso String Quartet handles the whole thing live, which keeps it feeling more like a concert than a recording.

The venue is The Circuit Center at 5 Hot Metal St, in the 15203 zip code. It's described as blending modern sophistication with industrial charm, which fits the Candlelight format: an intimate, candlelit room rather than a traditional concert hall. Doors open 45 minutes before each show, and late entry isn't permitted, so it's worth getting there a bit early. Seats are assigned on arrival within the zone you purchase, and every ticket includes an instant photo of the audience.

Tickets start at $45.00, and with two showtimes on the same night, you can pick the one that fits your evening. The performance runs about 60 minutes, and the doors open at 6:00 PM for the first show and 8:15 PM for the second.