Most December performances around the Bay Area cost money. On the Kentfield campus of College of Marin, at 835 College Avenue, the price for the busiest stretch of the year is zero. Between December 3 and December 13, 2026, the Performing Arts department has scheduled five concerts in James Dunn Theatre and eight performances of a Lanford Wilson play in the Studio Theatre. The college lists every one of them as free, with tickets handed out first-come, first-served.
Several of these shows start at the same hour on the same evening. Seats go to whoever reserves first. And the box office window at the Performing Arts Building has closed. Planning December on College Avenue means planning around those three facts.
Thirteen performances in eleven days
Here is the full run, in date order, taken from the college's current season page and each event's own listing.
- Thursday, Dec. 3: Book of Days opens in the Studio Theatre, PA 32, at 7:30 p.m.
- Friday, Dec. 4: The COM Jazz Ensemble plays James Dunn Theatre at 7:30 p.m. The program looks back across big-band jazz, funk, fusion and swing and includes Coltrane arrangements. Book of Days also plays at 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 5: The Golden Gate Brass Band performs "Alpine Brass" at 3 p.m., with music by Strauss, Mahler, Brahms and Wagner. Book of Days follows at 7:30 p.m.
- Sunday, Dec. 6: Book of Days matinee at 2 p.m.
- Thursday, Dec. 10: The Vocal Jazz Ensemble performs a program on the theme "Feeling Good" at 7:30 p.m., with selections including "The Look of Love" and "Let it Snow." Book of Days also plays at 7:30 p.m.
- Friday, Dec. 11: Book of Days at 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 12: The College of Marin Symphony Orchestra plays at 7:30 p.m. It opens with Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette" and includes Dvořák's Symphony No. 6. Book of Days also plays at 7:30 p.m.
- Sunday, Dec. 13: The Symphonic Wind Ensemble closes the concert run at 3 p.m. with "American Masterworks for Band," featuring Copland, Dello Joio, Hanson and Giannini's Symphony No. 3. Book of Days closes with a 2 p.m. matinee.
A smaller coda comes after the main run. The Beginning Voice Class Recital is Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 2:30 p.m., and the Advanced Voice Class Recital is Thursday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m. Both are in Lefort Recital Hall, PA72. Voice recitals appear on the college's list of free music admissions.
Where the dates collide
Lay the two venues side by side and you can see the main planning problem. On four of the five concert days, Book of Days has a performance that starts at the same hour as the concert or within an hour of it.
| Date | James Dunn Theatre | Studio Theatre, Book of Days | Can you see both? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Jazz Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | No |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Golden Gate Brass Band, 3 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | Yes |
| Thu., Dec. 10 | Vocal Jazz Ensemble, 7:30 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | No |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | No |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Symphonic Wind Ensemble, 3 p.m. | 2 p.m. | Starts an hour apart |
Saturday, Dec. 5 is the only concert day with a clear gap between the two: brass at 3 p.m., Lanford Wilson at 7:30 p.m., in the same building. On Dec. 4, 10 and 12 the two start at the same moment. On Dec. 13 the play begins an hour before the concert, and the listings don't give a running time, so whether you can see both that afternoon is an open question.
The play has more slack. It runs eight times, so if a concert takes your Friday, Thursday or Saturday evening, the same production plays again on Sunday, Dec. 6 at 2 p.m. or Friday, Dec. 11 at 7:30 p.m., with neither night competing against a concert. Each concert happens only once. If your household cares about one particular ensemble, book that concert first and fit the play around it.
Reserving a seat when nobody is at the window
The college's tickets page puts it plainly: the College of Marin Box Office is closed and no longer staffed. Anyone who remembers walking up to the window at the corner of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and Laurel Avenue will find the process has moved online. Here is how it works now.
- Reserve online. All show tickets are available on Eventbrite or through pa.marin.edu. Each concert listing links to its own Eventbrite reservation.
- Know that the seats are limited. Drama and music tickets are both listed as free on a first-come, first-served basis, so the seat count, not the price, is what runs out.
- Call the right line with questions. Music admission questions go to (415) 485-9460. Drama and dance questions go to (415) 485-9555.
- Park in the near lots. Parking fees are waived starting one hour before performances in lots 2, 3, 4 and 16, which the college identifies as the lots closest to the Performing Arts Building.
The fee waiver begins one hour before the curtain, so for a 7:30 p.m. start it covers arrivals from 6:30 p.m. That timing also shapes dinner plans, which are covered below.
You don't have to wait for December to try the system. Defying Gravity by Jane Anderson is in James Dunn Theatre now and runs through October 18, 2026.
Dinner first, at the new place in Bon Air
Kentfield's newest pre-show option opened this past summer. The Marin Independent Journal reported in early September that Tipsy Dumpling had opened the month before at 340 Bon Air Center in Greenbrae, serving handmade dumplings and other Chinese dishes. A later Marin IJ review confirmed the address and noted patio seating, a full bar and free parking.
According to the IJ's September report, the restaurant is open 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Those hours make an early dinner before a 7:30 p.m. curtain on College Avenue workable. Dinner after an evening show is less certain, since the posted closing times are 9 and 9:30 p.m. The two weekend afternoon concerts, on Dec. 5 and Dec. 13, are the easiest days to have a sit-down meal after the show instead of before it. Hours at new restaurants can change, so it's worth confirming them before December.
Bon Air Center's own events calendar fills in some of the weeks before the college's run, with its free Halloween Bash on Oct. 31 and a Diwali celebration on Friday, Nov. 6, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. No December holiday events had been posted there as of mid-October.
The Ross weekends that may land on the same dates
Just over the line in Ross, Marin Art and Garden Center at 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. in Ross runs its own December tradition, Winter Wonderland. As of October 12, 2026, the center's Winter Wonderland page has not posted 2026 dates, hours or ticket details. Its 2026 sponsorship brochure describes the event only as running for two weeks in December, with holiday lights, cookie decorating and musical performances.
The most recent dates available are from last year. In 2025, according to MarinArts, Winter Wonderland ran Dec. 5–7 and Dec. 12–14, with free garden entry. Workshops, shopping, theater and other activities cost extra, and the program included an estate sale, music, a seasonal sound bath, art shows, cookie decorating and gingerbread houses. Marin Magazine's 2025 December calendar listed the same two weekends.
Those 2025 weekends match up closely with the 2026 Saturdays and Sundays on College Avenue: Dec. 5–6 and Dec. 12–13. Whether the center keeps the same pattern this year is unconfirmed. If it does, the weekend afternoons in the second week of December would offer a garden workshop in Ross and a 3 p.m. concert in Kentfield, both off Sir Francis Drake, and choosing between them becomes part of the weekend.
Saturday, Dec. 5 is the date to watch. It is already the one concert day with a clear gap between a concert and the play, and if Marin Art and Garden Center repeats its 2025 schedule, it would be the fullest day in this part of the Ross Valley all December.
Keeping track of what's happening along College Avenue and Sir Francis Drake is part of how we follow the Ross Valley year-round. If you'd like a conversation about Kentfield, from its December calendar to the streets just off campus, Drew Thomas at Marin Life Elevated is glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
