Rita Coolidge Brings Sounds of the Season to Marshall in 25th Wonderland Of Lights

News provided by

Marshall Convention & Visitors Bureau

Nov 17, 2011, 09:02 ET

MARSHALL, Texas, Nov. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Two-time Grammy Award® winner Rita Coolidge brings the sounds of Christmas to Marshall with help from the A Cappella Choir of Wiley College in a one-night-only show at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3 at the Marshall Visual Art Center, 208 E. Burleson.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111117/DC08494)

Her Christmas concert combines hits that have made Coolidge one of rock and pop music's most admired singers with holiday favorites and is part of the 25th annual Wonderland of Lights festival in Marshall.

Tickets are $38. Purchase online at www.visitmarshalltexas.org or call (800)595-4849.

The concert is a highlight of the 25th annual Wonderland of Lights, a Texas holiday tradition, November 23 through January 1 in Washington Square, West Houston St. at North Washington Ave. in downtown Marshall, Texas.

More than a million lights will shine on Marshall's town square, historic courthouse and a wonderland of attractions planned in the 25th Wonderland of Lights, a 40-day festival of holiday lights and family fun.

25TH ANNUAL WONDERLAND OF LIGHTS

The festival opens in lighting ceremonies at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 23 in Washington Square, and luminaries will flip the switch to bring the festival to light at 6:06 p.m. during ceremonies presented by Network Communications and The Marshall News Messenger.

Kaitlyn Maher, the youngest contestant to reach the "America's Got Talent" top 10, lends her voice to opening night ceremonies and will share the stage with Miss Texas Kendall Morris on Nov. 23

The holiday festival celebrates its 25th year with new attractions, including the world's biggest rocking horse, a 37-foot-tall toboggan mountain for sledding, and twice the outdoor ice skating on two Samsung skating rinks--one for families and another just for kids. Double-decker bus tours and Clydesdale-drawn carriage rides offer best seats for Wonderland of Lights sights this year.

Favorite Wonderland attractions return, led by the synchronized light and music shows that delighted crowds in their debut last year. Other crowd-pleasers include a life-sized snow globe that lets visitors step into the holiday scene, trackless mini-train rides, cooking classes for grown-ups and more.

Attraction costs vary, but admission to Wonderland of Lights is free. A $25 day pass to Wonderland of Lights is the best deal going and offers unlimited ice skating, rides on the double-decker English bus, the Marshall Express trackless train, Toboggan Mountain, and giant rocking horse. Day passes also are good for one photo at the Capital One Snow Globe, and pass holders enjoy priority boarding for attractions. Day passes can be used on any of the festival's 40 days but are available by advance purchase only through Nov. 22 at www.visitmarshalltexas.org.

Hours for the 25th annual Wonderland of Lights are 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday November 23 through December 15 and December 26 through January 1. Hours are 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily December 16 through 25.

25TH ANNUAL WONDERLAND OF LIGHTS

Visit Marshall, Texas, online at www.visitmarshalltexas.org for tickets or more information, and follow @25thWonder on Twitter.

About Wonderland of Lights
A 1987 editorial in The Marshall News Messenger made a wish that has illuminated this town for 25 years. The editorial, published in hard times for East Texas, imagined "Marshall's square, every tree, every bush, decorated with tiny white lights." Philanthropist and Marshall native Wendy Russell Reves responded with a generous donation to make that wish come true in the first annual Wonderland of Lights. Today Wonderland of Lights is a Texas favorite, and more than 125,000 visitors make coming to Marshall a holiday tradition.

The 25th annual Wonderland of Lights is produced by Z Group for Marshall Convention and Visitors Bureau. Sponsors include Celebrating Home/Steve and Penny Carlile, Samsung, Capital One Bank, Texas Monthly, McKool Smith, The Marshall News Messenger, KMHT Radio, Network Communications, East Texas Baptist University, Cassity Jones, Good Shepherd Medical Center - Marshall, Bancorp South, Brownrigg Insurance, Design Media, AEP Swepco, City of Jefferson, Get Healthy Marshall, East Texas Radio Group, Bandstand Music, Ken and Celia Carlile, Camterra Resources, Logan & Whaley, Marshall Ford, Marshall Toyota, Marshall Mall, Marshall Life Center, Chase Bank, Panola National Bank, Austin Bank, Michael C. Smith, Citizens National Bank, Bandstand Music, Mary Fitts, Flo Jasper, The Made-Rite Co., Lewis Engineering, Knuckols, Duvall & Hallum, Mar-Tex Evening Lions Club, Silverleaf Resorts, Fowler Transportation, Patronus Petroleum, Dr. & Mrs. George Bennett, David and Dorcas Collins and Debbie Bates.