Santa´s Arrival
SANTA, MUSIC AND FUN FOR GRAND OPENING OF INDOOR PLAYGROUND AT GENESEE VALLEY CENTER
November 15, 2004, Flint, MI--The boys and girls in this community must have been especially good in 2004, because Santa is brings a bag full of goodies to Genesee Valley Center this holiday season. A whimsical, enchanting schedule of stilt walkers, royal escorts, court jesters and a bagpiper kick off the season and Santa’s arrival on Saturday, November 20 in the JCPenney court.
The gift of the season is the much anticipated “King Arthur’s Castle” a state of the art, indoor playground created and themed exclusively for the customers of Genesee Valley Center. This indoor playground features a ten-foot dual-towered castle proudly waving pennants on its crest, centered in a soft play environment complete with a rustic bridge and an imaginary pond offering the perfect crawl through and an inviting slide. There is also a fallen log slide and two whimsical sea creatures guarding the castle. The most welcoming element in the play area is the toadstool seating for story telling with mushroom-capped clusters bordering the platform. This stool will be the stage for many hours of story telling during this holiday season and throughout the coming years.
The fun kicks off at 10 a.m. when King Arthur and his lovely queen, dressed in Renaissance period costume of crushed velvet and gold adornments, begin their search throughout the newly renovated corridor of the center seeking out worthy knights and fair damsels, under the age of 10, to join them in the annual Santa parade. These lucky court members will be adorned with a multi-jeweled crown to identify them as official members of the king and queen’s court. Surrounding the playground, in anticipation of Santa’s arrival, a juggling court jester and royal stilt walker will entertain customers prior to the much-anticipated performance by the RAGGS KIDS Club band, a nationally recognized children’s act appearing this month on PBS stations across the country.
At 11 a.m., the official RAGGS Kids Club Band, live and in person, will take center stage and perform 11 holiday songs. Band members RAGGS, Trilby, Pido, B. Max and Razzles, the dog-themed costumed band members, are gearing up to welcome the jolly ole elf himself for this holiday season. Santa will officially arrive and open this wonderful playground to the customers of Genesee Valley Center.
Following the ribbon cutting and the launching of over 600 multi-colored balloons, Santa, the King and Queen and their court, the juggler and stilt walker will parade throughout the center, winding their way up and down the halls, lead by the musical, mystical sound of a bagpiper. As Santa arrives in center court to greet all the boys and girls patiently waiting in line, the lights on the 30-foot festively decorated tree will magically illuminate to officially kick off the holiday season at Genesee Valley.
“This is the Santa arrival worthy of the land called Camelot,” said Lili Donaldson, marketing manager, Genesee Valley Center. “Santa’s arrival is the beginning of weeks of entertainment and surprises that will continue to thrill our customers weekend after weekend this holiday season.”
Surprises for the day don’t end there. The RAGGS Kids Club Band returns onstage near King Arthur’s Castle in JCPenney court at 4 p.m. for another half-hour performance.
At 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. “King Arthur” will appear at the play area story telling platform to read “Auntie Claus” a children’s book by Elisa Primavera. Grab your camera because at the conclusion of the reading, “Auntie Claus” will make a guest appearance and greet children for a unique photo opportunity.
This is just the first day of a season full of story telling, nationally recognized entertainment including comics, jugglers, puppet shows, magic shows and songs performed for the entire family. For a calendar of events visit geneseemall.com or stop by the customer service desk for a printed copy of scheduled holiday events at Genesee Valley Center.
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