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Fashion Island Tree Lighting Ceremony

Fashion Island’s annual Tree Lighting Ceremony returns for two nights to celebrate holiday season

The tree lighting in Newport Beach will be held at 6 p.m. Nov. 18 and 19

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (Nov. 1, 2016) — Ahead of its 50th anniversary next year, Fashion Island is returning to its classic tree lighting tradition.

The festivities will be held for two evenings at 6 p.m. Nov. 18 and 19 for the annual lighting of Fashion Island’s towering 90-foot Christmas tree—complete with Santa, live holiday musical entertainment and magical “snowfall.”

“Fashion Island has had a tree lighting ceremony nearly every year since it opened and this year, we wanted to return to our roots of focusing on the spirit of the season for the community,” said Easther Liu, chief marketing officer for Irvine Company Retail Properties. “It will be a warm holiday celebration for all the friends and families who continue to be an important part of Fashion Island’s legacy as we get ready to usher in our 50th anniversary.”

This year’s Tree Lighting Ceremony will be hosted by longtime KOST 103.5 FM radio personality Mark Wallengren and will feature the “The Young Americans,” a non-profit traveling performance troupe based in Southern California. This year, the group will perform a preview of their annual hit show, “The Magic of Christmas,” a captivating holiday production that will feature dynamic performance numbers along with classic holiday favorites.

The ceremony will culminate with a countdown to the lighting of the tree by none other than Santa Claus, followed by a flurry of snow for the thousands of guests expected to attend.

WHEN: 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18 and Saturday, Nov. 19
WHERE: Neiman Marcus-Bloomingdale’s Courtyard at Fashion Island, 401 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach.

About Fashion Island
As Orange County’s premier coastal shopping experience, Fashion Island features exclusive specialty boutiques, world-class department stores and a diverse assortment of restaurants and cafes. With 15 million visitors a year, Fashion Island offers a sophisticated yet relaxed, resort-like atmosphere that is distinctively Southern California, with pristine views of the Pacific Ocean.
Owned by Irvine Company, Fashion Island is home to Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, Bloomingdale’s Home Store and Macy’s – in addition to Orange County’s only Neiman Marcus, Nespresso, Urban Decay, NIKE, SoulCycle, Trina Turk, Vince, Joie and Halston Heritage. Fashion Island also features acclaimed restaurants such as Sushi Roku, FIG & OLIVE, Red O by Rick Bayless, CUCINA enoteca, Hopdoddy Burger Lounge, True Food Kitchen and R+D Kitchen. For more information, please visit ShopFashionIsland.com.

About The Young Americans
The Young Americans, founded in 1962 by Milton C. Anderson, is credited with creating the very popular glee and show choir concepts in the late 60’s. Since then, the group has grown into 250 college-aged cast members and has taken its love of music, teaching and performing all over the World with its signature Music Outreach Workshop Tours. Last year alone, the group staged over 370 performances and music advocacy workshops in 132 cities, across 30 countries. The Group has influenced and worked with more than 790,000 young people in public and private schools, and performed for millions of people worldwide.