The Holiday Gala is making its biennial return to Baldwin Wallace University on Saturday, Dec. 3 from 7-11 p.m. at Strosacker Hall. 

All undergraduate students are offered one free ticket to the event. Guests aged 12 and under are free and other guests who are not BW students can purchase tickets for $5. University staff and alumni can also buy tickets at the $5 price point. Matthew Perry, the Holiday Gala planning committee chairperson, said that it is important to reserve tickets ahead of time due to high demand.  

Perry said the event will feature activities like cookie decorating, horse drawn carriage rides, photo booths and more. 

“This Holiday Gala is going to be so much different than the one put on a few years ago because it is the first full-blown gala since Covid,” said Brenna Holliday, a member of the entertainment committee. 

This year’s Holiday Gala will be different from the others because of supplemental events that took place prior to Saturday’s Gala. On Thursday, Dec. 1, an ice skating rink was set up on the tennis courts while a s’mores-making event was held at the “Circle of Warmth” next to the Union.  

Perry said that there will be new decorations at Strosacker Hall to celebrate the event.  

“I’d like to say that the Union is gonna be completely transformed from what you see here on a daily basis,” Perry said.  

“Everyone on the Planning Committee is excited about the theme, ‘Holidays in Hollywood’ theme, and have added in cool decoration twists to stick with the theme,” Holliday said. “We also have a mashed potatoes bar, which is pretty epic.”  

The last Holiday Gala was held in 2020, but it looked different than the previous ones due to the pandemic. Perry said that they were able to do the Holiday Gala in person by doing it in April and changing to it be an outdoor event with assigned time slots to comply with Covid guidelines. 

Perry said that at the upcoming Holiday Gala, there will be performers from the Conservatory, and then after that there will be a DJ who will take over. 

Perry is excited to see everyone’s reactions to the decorations and all the activities and is looking forward to being with the community.  

Holliday said she is “excited to hear the student performances.” 

 “Students should all come to the Gala,” Holliday said. “There are going to be so many fun events and picture opportunities for everyone involved.”