The Crest Theatre’s December lineup stretches from punk rock to jazz to comedy, but December 12 makes a turn toward something warmer: A Magical Motown Christmas, a touring concert that bills itself as the country’s leading Motown show, lands on K Street at 7:30 PM for one Sacramento performance.
The show draws from the Motown catalog at the intersection of holiday and soul — combining Christmas classics with the hits of The Temptations, Diana Ross and The Supremes, The Jackson Five, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Smokey Robinson. It’s a live performance, not a tribute band format in the classic cover-band sense — the production travels with its own cast, choreography, and costuming built around recreating the sound and staging of Motown’s mid-century peak.
What It Is
A Magical Motown Christmas is produced by PFM and tours nationally each fall. This December it makes a Sacramento stop between legs of a coast-to-coast run. The show combines the holiday repertoire of the Motown era — Think The Temptations’ rendition of “Silent Night,” or Diana Ross on a Christmas record — with the chart-toppers those same artists made famous year-round. The result is part holiday concert, part Motown revue, staged with the kind of group choreography and sequined presentation that defined the original label’s visual style.
The Crest Theatre is a good room for this format. With about 1,000 seats and a wide main floor, most views are unobstructed, and the sight lines to the stage are direct. The venue is small enough that even mid-house seats feel close.
Practical Details
The show starts at 7:30 PM on Saturday, December 12. Doors at the Crest typically open 30 to 45 minutes before showtime, so arriving by 7:00 PM gives time to settle without rushing. Parking in the K Street Corridor runs about $10 to $15 at nearby garages, or is free on weekends in the surrounding blocks after 6 PM — check signs before you park.
Tickets are sold through Ticketmaster. The Crest’s box office at 1013 K Street also handles walk-up sales when available. The box office number is (916) 442-7378.
The Details
- Date: Saturday, December 12, 2026
- Showtime: 7:30 PM
- Venue: Crest Theatre, 1013 K St, Sacramento, CA 95814
- Tickets: Via Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com or the Crest box office at (916) 442-7378
- Artists featured: The Temptations, The Jackson Five, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson
- Parking: Nearby paid garages or free on-street after 6 PM; check signage
- Age: All ages
Bottom Line
If you like Motown, A Magical Motown Christmas is worth a Saturday night in December. The Crest is an easy venue — central, walkable from DOCO and Old Sacramento parking, and rarely oversold for shows in this range. The holiday packaging adds a reason to go in December specifically, but the draw is really the catalog: an evening of Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and The Temptations, with tinsel.
For more of what’s happening at the Crest this month, see the December 6 show by Kamasi Washington. For the full Sacramento holiday picture, the Sacramento holiday events calendar covers concerts, markets, and family outings through the end of the year. The Sacramento Gay Men’s Chorus Holiday HITS! also plays Memorial Auditorium on December 5 if you’re looking for live holiday vocals earlier in the month.
