Weekend things to do: A super terrific mega list of happenings from Christmas Day to New Year’s Eve

As you may have heard, South Florida will be getting a special shout-out on CNN’s “New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen,” courtesy of a three-minute broadcast airing live from a yacht docked at Pier Sixty-Six in Fort Lauderdale, all gussied up after a $1 billion makeover.

Cooper and Cohen are my all-time favorite NYE hosts, sharing a smart, witty and generous brand of male friendship that you don’t see much. When they came to the Broward Center for the Performing Arts on their AC2 tour a few years ago, Cooper, an infrequent drinker, admitted to not hating the cocktail Cohen served for them during the show. It’s called a Fresquila — “a low-rent, bootleg version of a Paloma,” Cohen said — and combines tequila and Fresca, with extra ice. If you’re looking for something unique for your holiday parties in the next seven days …

CHRISTMAS DAY

Love and war: Revolution is in the air at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, which will be filled with “Do You Hear the People Sing?” and other sing-along ditties during performances of the Broadway tour of the sumptuous musical romance, “Les Misérables.” Catch it at 7:30 p.m. on Christmas Day, and again at 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $54.58. Visit BrowardCenter.org.

Maccabeat it: Temple Beth El in downtown West Palm Beach continues its centennial celebration with a concert by zany a cappella parodists The Maccabeats (their new animated spoof “HanuKpop Demon Hunters” is worth tracking down on YouTube) on Thursday at 4 p.m. The deadline for advance concert tickets has passed, but more may be available at the door for $54 for adults and $36 for kids age 12 and younger. Tickets for the concert and dinner cost $90, or $70 for guests age 12 and younger. Visit BethelWPB.com/100/maccabeats.

FRIDAY

The pub is open: The world-touring, pub-themed musical “The Choir of Man” — featuring classic rock and pop anthems, dancing, jokes and a working bar onstage where you can order a pre-show drink (courtesy of Funky Buddha Brewery and Civil Society Brewing)  — continues its run at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach through Sunday. Performances will be at 2 and 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 and 6 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $34.50. Visit Kravis.org.

Mouse house: This is closing weekend for Miami City Ballet’s eye-catching production of “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker” at the Arsht Center in Miami. Showtimes this weekend will be 7 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, noon and 5 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $52.65 at MiamiCityBallet.org.

Reiner remembered: The Fort Lauderdale International FIlm Festival will remember Academy Award-winning filmmaker Rob Reiner with weekend screenings at Savor Cinema. The lineup includes “The Princess Bride” (6 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday), “Misery” (8 p.m. Friday), “This is Spinal Tap” (4 p.m. Saturday) and “This is Spinal Tap II: The End Continues” (6 p.m. Saturday). Visit FLIFF.com.

‘Frozen’ live: Slow Burn Theatre Co.’s enthusiastically reviewed production of “Disney’s Frozen” continues its run at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale through Jan. 4. This weekend’s showtimes will be 1 and 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $91.45 at BrowardCenter.org.

Weekend laughs: Actor, writer and comedian Marlon Wayans will settle in at the Fort Lauderdale Improv in Dania Beach for seven performances through New Year’s Eve. Shows will take place at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Friday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, 6 p.m. Sunday, and 7 and 10 p.m. Wednesday. Tickets cost $61.90 for most performances, $81.90 for the late show on New Year’s Eve. Visit ImprovFTL.com. … Actor-comedian Zainab Johnson, as seen currently on the Greg Daniels sci-fi hit “Upload” on Amazon, will share a unique POV — she’s a Black, Muslim female comedian and, better yet, a former school teacher —  at the Miami Improv. Showtimes will be 7:30 and 10 p.m. Friday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, 7 p.m. Sunday, and 8 p.m. Monday and Tuesday. Tickets cost $28.90. Visit MiamiImprov.com.

Single yourself out: Self-pour beer bar Garden District Taproom in downtown West Palm Beach will host a Singles Mixer on Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. GDT typically attracts a chill crowd and they’ll be handing out color-coded wristbands to make your level of interest obvious. Should be fun. Visit Instagram.com/gardendistrictwpb.

Holiday cocktails: This weekend offers your last chance to check out some of the holiday cocktail pop-ups sprinkled around South Florida, including Mariah Carey’s Holiday Wonderland Bar at Ray’s Hometown Bar in the Freehand Miami hotel (RaysBarnyc.com). This whimsical takeover (which includes spins of “All I Want for Christmas is You” every 30 minutes and drinks made with Carey’s Black Irish Cream) comes down on Sunday. Also giving last call on Sunday are Miracle at the Carousel Club at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach (CarouselClub.com) and at Ravish Kitchen & Cocktails in Lantana (RavishKitchen.com), and Rooftop@1WLO in Fort Lauderdale (Instagram.com/rooftop1wlo). Meanwhile, the holiday theme runs through New Year’s Eve at Juicy in West Palm Beach (JuicyWPB.com) and Chops + Hops Axe Throwing Lodge inside Sistrunk Market in Fort Lauderdale (ChopsAndHopsFL.com).

Friday tributes: The Funky Biscuit in Boca Raton will host Bruce Springsteen tribute The Boss Project, performing iconic album “Born to Run,” beginning at 9 p.m. Friday. Some general-admission, standing-room tickets are available. Cost: $44.40. Saturday’s show is a sellout. Visit FunkyBiscuit.com. … Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young tribute Southern Cross will play the Boca Black Box on Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $67.68 at BocaBlackBox.com.

SATURDAY

Shakira’s back: Global pop star Shakira returns to South Florida for three Up Close & Personal concerts at 7,000-seat Hard Rock Live in Hollywood on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Tickets are scarce for the first two shows, but Monday’s concert has seats starting at $215.10. Visit MyHRL.com.

EDM takes over WPB: Some of the most popular EDM artists on the planet — led by Kaskade, Axwell (Swedish House Mafia) and Oliver Heldens — top the lineup for the two-day festival We Belong Here at the waterfront Meyer Amphitheatre in downtown West Palm Beach on Saturday (5-11 p.m.) and Sunday (4-10 p.m.). Tickets start at $164.99 for Saturday and $144.99 for Sunday. Two-day passes start at $279.99. The festival is 21-and-older. Visit WeBelongHere.world.

More beats: New Year’s festivities will begin ramping up at Hard Rock Hollywood dayclub/nightclub DAER on Saturday with two more global DJs, Steve Aoki (doors open at noon) and James Hype (doors open at 10 p.m.). Tickets for each show is $60.86. Visit HardRockNightlife.com.

A new brunch: “Top Chef” husband-and-wife team Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth recently unveiled a lakeside brunch menu at their buzzy Florida Room restaurant at The Fort pickleball complex in Fort Lauderdale. Offered from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the relaxing waterside eatery, the menu includes a signature Eggs Benedict, Honey Tabasco Glazed Bacon and Fried Chicken & Waffles — the latter drawing inspiration from one of their favorite comfort food guilty pleasures at Shake Shack. Visit FloridaRoomFTL.com.

Learn to curl: I’m calling it: Curling is the new pickleball. The Florida Panthers’ Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale will host introductory lessons in curling — that odd game in which players slide heavy, handled stones along the ice while their teammates clear the way with brooms — on Saturday at 4:45 p.m. There will also be an ugly sweater contest and free hot cocoa. Registration for the 18-and-older event costs $40 at FTLWarMemorial.com.

Laughs and tomatoes: The Sour Tomatoes Comedy Show, coming to LauderAle Brewery & Taproom in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday at 7 p.m., is “equal parts comedy and chaos.” Don’t like the comedian’s joke? Let ’em know by throwing a tomato. Like a joke just fine? Let a tomato fly anyway. Admission costs $10; $15 for admission and five tomatoes; $20 for admission, tomatoes and a beer. Visit Instagram.com/sourtomatoescomedyshow.

SUNDAY

Big Easy does it: One of South Florida’s most decorated blues-rock guitarists will lead JP Soars & The Red Hots during a festive Mardi Gras Brunch at The Wine & Spirits Kitchen in Delray Beach on Sunday, beginning at 11 a.m. The band goes on at 12:30 p.m. Visit WineAndSpiritsKitchen.com.

Weekend cocktail: Because you can’t just have a martini nowadays, how about a caviar martini? Bourbon Steak in Aventura is now offering Michy’s Caviar Martini — Chopin Reserve Vodka, Lillet Blanc, topped with olives stuffed with kaluga caviar  — prepared tableside. Cost: $48. The Dolphins are playing, so make it a double. Visit BourbonSteakMIA.com.

MONDAY

New reality: Can there be a more fitting exclamation point on 2025 than a binge of the bubbly new docusoap “Members Only: Palm Beach,” launching Monday with a drop of all eight episodes on Netflix? The show follows five women — Hilary Musser, Taja Abitbol, Rosalyn Yellin, Ro-mina Ustayev and Maria Cozamanis — striving to do whatever people do in Palm Beach these days. I’ll be taking notes. For more on the show, visit Netflix.com.

TUESDAY

Pop goes Shakespeare: The effervescent Broadway musical “& Juliet” takes over the Arsht Center in Miami on Tuesday for a run through Jan. 4. A retelling of Shakespeare’s star-crossed love story, “& Juliet” imagines what might have happened if she had lived and moved on with her life, set to a soundtrack of Katy Perry, Ariana Grande, Britney Spears and the like. Yes, there will be confetti. The book is by David West Read, an Emmy winner for “Schitt’s Creek.” Performances start at 8 p.m. Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 8 p.m. Jan. 1-2, 2 and 8 p.m. Jan. 3, 1 and 7 p.m. Jan. 4. Tickets start at $58.50 depending on performance day at time. Visit ArshtCenter.org.

Take the kids: The high-flying “360 Allstars” combines street culture and athleticism, BMX riding, basketball, breakdancing, beatboxing, acrobatics and percussion into a high-energy urban circus. The tour will stop at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $40.26 at Kravis.org.

Big star: Comedian Brad Williams already had funny stories, but now he also can share more compelling tales about being directed by Rob Reiner in “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues” and sharing a scene with Elton John. Williams brings The Growth Spurt Tour to The Parker in Fort Lauderdale at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Tickets cost $82.01 at ParkerPlayhouse.com.

NEW YEAR’S EVE

Happy omakase! Celebrate the New Year at Kapow Noodle Bar in Boca Raton, where chef JM Canlas (formerly of MILA Omakase on Miami Beach) will prepare an intimate 15-dish omakase experience on Wednesday night. The dinner, with two seatings for 10 people each, will feature three caviars and five courses highlighting white and burgundy truffles, premium Hokkaido Uni, Otoro tuna and A5 Wagyu beef. Seatings, which include a welcome cocktail, will be at 6:30 and 9 p.m. (the latter includes a Champagne toast at midnight). Cost for each is $195 per person (plus tax/tip). Visit: KapowNoodleBar.com. Side note: The evening also will offer a peek at what’s coming to MINŌ, a 10-seat, members-only omakase and sake bar, a Kapow sister space in Boca Raton, set to debut soon. Visit Instagram.com/mino.omakase.

Hot spot to chill: The Ben in downtown West Palm Beach will ring in 2026 with a late-night edition of Winter Wonderland at the hotel’s real-ice skating rink from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. The rinkside party will include an open bar, party favors and a DJ spinning dance-party favorites. Tickets for the 21-and-older event cost $99 at Facebook.com/thebenwestpalm.

“Home” free: The annual Fort Lauderdale Orange Bowl Downtown Countdown is a free street festival at Esplanade Park on Wednesday that begins at 4:30 p.m. with family oriented activities (including a New Year’s countdown for kids at 7 p.m.), then adds DJs and a concert by singer-songwriter Phillip Phillips (go give “Home” another listen) from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m., interrupted by the famed dropping of the lighted anchor at midnight. Visit Parks.FortLauderdale.gov/nye.

New Year’s jam: Grammy-winning bassist Oteil Burbridge (Allman Brothers Band, Dead & Company) will bring his Oteil & Friends tour to The Parker in downtown Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday at 9 p.m. Tickets are available, starting at $93.81. Visit ParkerPlayhouse.com. at Ticketmaster.com.

Bro time: The Jonas Brothers will celebrate among their legion of South Florida fans with a concert beginning at 10 p.m. Wednesday at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, where the audience will get to hear the new Nick Jonas single “Gut Punch” (set for release Jan. 1),  from his imminent album “Sunday Best” (out Feb. 6). You can still get tickets, starting at $80.80, at MyHRL.com.

Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on IG: @BenCrandell.