Best of the Week (Dec. 8-15): Camila Cabello at Jingle Ball, Morgan Evans, 'Nutcracker,' Wynton Marsalis, Monster Jam, more

Katy Perry has top billing at the KDWB Jingle Ball, but especially after her dud of a recent album, the "Roar" hitmaker is behind Camila Cabello in buzz. "Havana" singer Cabello is hotter than ever with "Senorita" and the accompanying Sean Mendes gossip. She's using the Jingle Ball circuit to hype her second album, "Romance," out this weekend. Otherwise the Ball offers a lot of déjà vu, as boy bands 5 Seconds of Summer, Monsta X and Why Don't We return on yet another unfortunate Monday night booking. Chris Riemenschneider

7:30 p.m. Mon. Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul. $26-$101, ticketmaster.com.

Aussie singer Morgan Evans just dropped another song, "Diamonds," about his wife, country star Kelsea Ballerini. His first Nashville hit, 2017's bubblegum-y "Kiss Somebody," was also about her. However, when he opened solo for Dan + Shay this year at the Minneapolis Armory, Evans charmed with the party tunes "Day Drunk," which was a Down Under smash, and "Young Again," which sounds like an Irish drinking song.

Jon Bream

8 p.m. Thu. Varsity Theater, Mpls. $25 and up, tickemaster.com.

For its annual "Nutcracker," Metropolitan Ballet is teaming up with the Linden Hills Chamber Orchestra and the Kenwood Symphony Orchestra, which will alternate performances to give audiences the full spectrum of Tchaikovsky's classic score. Guest dancers include Natalia Sheptalova of the Russian National Ballet as the Sugar Plum Fairy, and Hsueh Chieh Hung, who has won ballet competitions in Taiwan and Japan.

Sheila Regan

Every December, Wynton Marsalis' Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra celebrates the season with swinging arrangements of sacred and secular tunes. On the 2015 album "Big Band Holidays," Marsalis showcased vocal stars Cecile McLorin Salvant and Gregory Porter, and this fall he delivered "Big Band Holidays II" with Aretha Franklin and Catherine Russell. The vocalists on tour are Denzal Sinclaire and teenager Alexis Morrast, the 2017 winner on "Showtime at the Apollo."

J.B.

8 p.m. Fri. Orchestra Hall, Mpls. $50-$143, minnesotaorchestra.org.

Sporting obnoxiously large tires and mad attitude, Grave Digger, Avenger, Rage and other monster trucks return to the dirt mounds placed inside U.S. Bank Stadium for Monster Jam. Stunts and trick maneuvers will send trucks through the air and skidding across the ground. A preshow pit party allows guests to meet drivers and see vehicles up close. Get autographs and take pictures next to the oversized machines.

Melissa Walker

Bach's Brandenburg Concertos shimmer with joie de vivre and richly interlacing instrumental textures. They've become a holiday tradition for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, which is bundling five of them into a single evening. As in Bach's lifetime, the concertos are played without a conductor, though the SPCO is joined by eminent harpsichordist Jory Vinikour for the keyboard-centric Fifth.

Terry Blain

7:30 p.m. Thu., Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Apple Valley; 8 p.m. Fri., Wayzata Community Church; 8 p.m. Sat., Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul. $11-$50, thespco.org.

In the wonderful, poetic first half of the Moving Company's "What If," Steven Epp subtly transforms, from a Syrian man to a teenage girl from Nebraska to Greta Thunberg to a flock of starlings. Epp's characters all experience catastrophe; how we respond to enormous change is a theme. It's angry and passionate, but also very funny. The second half is a broadly comic piece by gifted clowns Sarah Agnew and Nathan Keepers.

Chris Hewitt

For sheer vocal quality, the annual Christmas show by the eight-man Minneapolis vocal ensemble Cantus is hard to beat. This year's program re-imagines the traditional holiday tales "The Little Match Girl," "Christmas or the Good Fairy" and the Nutcracker Suite, in a mix of familiar carols and newer pieces.

T.B.

11 a.m. Thu., Westminster Presbyterian Church, Mpls.; 7:30 p.m. Thu., Fridley District Auditorium; 7:30 p.m. Sat., Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Apple Valley; 2 p.m. next Sun., Hamline United Methodist Church, St. Paul. $10-$32, 612-435-0055 or cantussings.org.

Be it a crunchy cookie or a strange gelatin concoction, many families have holiday baking traditions. A family baking workshop at Mill City Museum invites bakers to make a recipe from the book "Jul: Swedish American Holiday Traditions" and learn about different traditions around Minneapolis and their origins. Guests will get to take home their creations, and get recipes to try out later.

M.W.