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History of Celebrate Christmas
Covenant College invites our friends, alumni, and local community to join us for this year’s Celebrate Christmas event! Celebrate Christmas is a new iteration of one of Covenant’s oldest traditions: Madrigal Dinner (commonly just called Madrigals). We wanted to share a bit of history about Madrigals and how it has changed into Celebrate Christmas.
The Madrigal Dinner was a grand renaissance-themed Christmas performance and dinner started by Dr. John Hamm in 1969. Originally, the music department put on three performances. Madrigals was hosted by music majors and minors and directed by the music department faculty. It was a beautiful event that often was the “prom” of Covenant’s fall semester. Friends and family came and celebrated Christ’s birth with Covenant’s community.
After Dr. John Hamm retired, funding difficulties and the market crash in 2008 forced a break from Madrigals. Many alumni had fond memories of the event, so the Covenant community was excited to bring the tradition back in 2013. With the return of Madrigals came a change: the event is no longer ticketed and it is completely free, with funding from the music department covering the costs. We do offer VIP tickets for $20 for those who would like to secure front row seats to the performance and an area close to the stage during the dessert party.
With these changes, the college felt that Madrigals needed a new name, so Celebrate Christmas was born. The evening begins with a concert in the chapel featuring the entire music department. Then guests move to the Great Hall for story-telling, refreshments, and mingling. If you would like to reserve your seats, (both $20 VIP tickets and free regular seating), follow this link.