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The tree lighting at Fanueil Hall Marketplace in Boston. (submitted photo)

Holidays shine in Hub

Faneuil Hall Marketplace will host the 25th annual Holiday Tree Lighting ceremony and celebration from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21. At approximately 5:30 p.m., newly re-elected Mayor Thomas Menino and a surprise celebrity will switch on the Christmas tree lights. The tree is about 87 feet tall and will be adorned with 15,000 bright white lights and some 3,000 gold, red and green ornaments. The event is free and open to everyone. There will also be carolers, Santa, pop and rock music, Boston Ballet Nutcracker characters. (www.faneuilhallboston.org) (FREE)

Get the blues at Showcase

It's going to be all about the blues tonight (Nov. 19) at Showcase Live in Foxboro. Tommy Castro and Coco Montoya will perform at the Patriot Place venue. Castro, winner of the 2008 Blues Music Award as Entertainer Of The Year, will celebrate the release of his Alligator Records debut "Hard Believer." Montoya is touring in support of his latest CD, "Dirty deal." Showtime is 8 p.m.; tickets are $20 or $45 for the VIP booth. (888-354-7042 or www.showcaselive.com)

Jazz and swing fundraiser

Foxboro resident Krisanthi Pappas and her five-piece band will be performing jazz and swing standards this Saturday and Sunday as a special fundraiser for the Walpole Footlighters capital improvement fund. Pappas performs at 150 gigs a year and her voice can even be heard on ABC and NBC soap operas. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22, at the Footlighters Playhouse, 2 Scout Road, East Walpole. Tickets are $20. (508-668-8446 or www.footlighters.com)

Rockin' prelude to Pats

Girls, Guns and Glory will perform a free concert at 11 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 22, at Patriot Place in Foxboro, as a prelude to the Patriots-Jets game that afternoon at Gillette Stadium. Self-proclaimed "alternatives to the alternative alternative," GG&G formed in Scituate in the winter of 2005 and garnered a lot of positive buzz with their sophomore release, "Pretty Little Wrecking Ball," in 2007. They're now out in support of their third studio release, "Inverted Valentine." If you want to check them out, go to www.splashpublicity.com. (FREE)

Handbell choirs in Foxboro

This Saturday, Nov. 21, St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 116 South St., Foxboro will ring out with the sound of three English handbell choirs and the St. Mark's Handbell Choir. A public concert is set for 3 p.m., with guest conductor and handbell "clinician" Daniel K. Moore from Rhode Island. For more info, contact St. Mark's at 508-543-8191.

COMING ATTRACTION

Shrine ready to shine

The annual Festival of Lights at LaSalette Shrine, 947 Park St. (Route 118), Attleboro, kicks off Thanksgiving night, Nov. 26, and runs through Jan. 3. The lights will shine daily from 5 to 9 p.m., with an opening ceremony at 4:55 p.m. at the outdoor manger. Parking and admission are free. New attractions this year include Clopper the Christmas Donkey around the Rosary Pond, and a traditional Nativity scene on loan from the city of Lagoa, Azores, Portugal. For more information or for a complete listing of Festival of Lights concerts and events, call 508-222-5410 or visit www.lasalette-shrine.org. (FREE)