The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square have kicked off their annual Christmas concerts on Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Tony Award-winning actress Stephanie J. Block and her husband, Broadway and television star Sebastian Arcelus, are the featured guest artists for the 2025 Christmas concerts. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hosts the annual event to celebrate the birth of the Savior, Jesus Christ.
Nearly 19,000 people attended the first performance at the Conference Center on Thursday evening, December 11, 2025. Additional shows will take place on Friday, December 12, and Saturday, December 13.
Downloadable B-roll
Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference.
© 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
1 / 2
Download Photos
Guest Artists Meet the Media
During a news conference on Friday morning, Arcelus and Block reflected on their opportunity to perform before a live audience with the world-renowned Choir at Christmastime.
“It’s a little different than some of the other concerts we’ve done, just a little less pageantry…with a focus on Jesus Christ,” said President Gary B. Porter of the Tabernacle Choir’s Presidency.
Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference.
© 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
1 / 2
Download Photos
Concert Highlights
Under the direction of Mack Wilberg, music director, and Ryan Murphy, associate music director, the guest artists are ringing in the Christmas spirit.
The concert opens with the Choir singing songs of Christmas joy, including “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee,” “Joy to the World” and “Tis Joy When Moon and Stars Above.”
The Bells at Temple Square and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble are also part of this year’s performances.
Block takes the stage to sing a couple of Christmas carols, including “Bring a Torch Jeanette, Isabella” and “What Child is This?” She also performs a medley of songs, including “My Favorite Things” from the movie “The Sound of Music.” She is joined by her husband during “Merry Christmas, Darling.”
Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference.
© 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
1 / 2
Download Photos
Arcelus returns to his Latin roots to sings several songs in Spanish, including “Vamos, ya Pastores.” In addition, Julian Mansilla and Leandro Curaba, two guest instrumentalists from South America performed during the Christmas concert following their first appearance with the Choir during its recent tour in Argentina.
The guest artists perform several Christmas favorites together such as “Jingle Bells” and “Silent Night.”
Organist Richard Elliott plays an arrangement of “Far, Far Away on Judea’s Plains.”
Later in the program, Arcelus and Block read the Christmas story found in Luke 2 in the New Testament.
The concluding song is “Angels from the Realms of Glory,” a Choir favorite arranged by Mack Wilberg, who has been involved in the Christmas concert for more than 25 years.
About the Guest Artists
Block recently appeared as Kate in “Kiss Me, Kate” at London’s Barbican Theatre and as the Baker’s Wife in the Broadway revival and national tour of “Into the Woods.” She received the 2019 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, along with Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards, for her performance in “The Cher Show.”
Her distinguished career includes multiple Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics nominations for roles in “Falsettos,” “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” “Anything Goes,” and “9 to 5: The Musical.”
Arcelus most recently portrayed the Baker opposite his wife in “Into the Woods.” He is best known to television audiences for his roles as Jay Whitman on CBS’s “Madam Secretary” and Lucas Goodwin on Netflix’s “House of Cards.” In addition to his work on Broadway and television, Arcelus has appeared in films and is a respected voice actor.
The two met while they were both playing lead roles in the first national tour of the Broadway show “Wicked.”
How to Attend the Concerts
Complimentary tickets for the performances on Friday and Saturday nights have already been distributed; however, a standby line will form at the Tabernacle on Temple Square 90 minutes before the concerts start at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Tickets are not required for the “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcast on Sunday, December 14, at 9:30 a.m., where Block and Arcelus are also scheduled to perform.
A Grammy Award-winning, multiple Emmy Award-winning, all-volunteer choral ensemble, The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square comprises 360 men and women who join their talents to create their trademark, instantly recognizable sound. The Choir, Orchestra and Bells at Temple Square provide inspiring music to help people feel closer to the divine and celebrate God’s love for all His children.
For more information, visit the Tabernacle Choir’s website.
