What's on this week: 17 December

The winter solstice approaches, and there’s arguably no better way to celebrate the shortest day of the year than with an evening run through Ghent. Thousands are expected to participate in this bi-annual event (the previous edition— Midsummer Night Run — took place exactly six months earlier, on the summer solstice). Athletes can choose between 5km and 10km. Both pass through the city’s most charming streets, rendered all the more whimsical by open-air performances and holiday magic. It’s all for charity, too; proceeds go to Unicef.
21 December, 19.30 at Vrijdagmarkt, Ghent
www.gentloopt.be

Leuven is celebrating the 500th birthday of Andreas Vesalius, perhaps the most influential alumnus of the city’s ancient university. The Brussels-born physician pioneered the field of modern anatomy by dissecting human corpses, a method heretofore forbidden by the church. We’ve all benefitted incalculably from Vesalius’ work, so it’s only natural that Red Cross Flanders and M Museum Leuven ask us to give a little something in return. This blood drive aims to enlist at least 500 volunteers, one for each year since the good doctor’s birth.
19 December, 20.15 at M Museum, Leuven
www.vesaliusleuven.be

Everyone knows that yoga is the path to serenity. The guerrilla gurus behind Flemish pop-up wellness community Yogadiscovery hope to put you on the fast track to Zen with their final session of 2014. Not only does yoga master An Block guide you through some supremely relaxing bodily contortions, but — leave your Enya CDs at home — New Age singer-songwriter Luc Acke performs a live soundtrack. The venue itself is one of Antwerp’s winter wonders. Until 25 January, temporary lounge/restaurant Aspen Bocadero is the closest thing to a Rocky Mountain ski lodge in these here Low Countries.
21 December, 15.00 at Aspen Bocadero, Antwerp
www.aspenbocadero.be

Irish Christmas with The Celtic Tenors: The popular Irish singing trio perform Christmas classics such as “Joy to the World”, “We Three Kings” and “The First Noel”. 19 December 20.30-23.00, CC Palethe, Jeugdlaan 2, Overpelt (Limburg)
www.palethe.be

L’Enfance du Christ (Christ’s Childhood): French conductor Ludovic Morlot leads an ensemble of soloists and the De Munt Symphony orchestra and chorus through this little-performed work by Hector Berlioz, an oratorio for soloists, chorus and orchestra from 1850-1854, in which Berlioz describes Jesus’ birth and early youth in the form of a sacred trilogy.
19 December 20.00 & 21 December 15.00, Bozar, Ravensteinstraat 23, Brussels
www.demunt.be

Violetta Live: Unique concert experience starring Martina Stoessel, from the Disney Channel hit series Violetta, featuring more actors and dancers performing songs from the first three seasons; a fifth performance was added due to popular demand, and tickets are flying out the door (ages 6 and up).
13-15 March, Paleis 12, Brussels Expo, Brussels
www.disney.be/violettalive

Sax200: Exhibition in honour of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Adolphe Sax, featuring everything there is to know about the inventor of the saxophone and his beloved instrument.
Until 11 January, Musical Instruments Museum, Hofberg 2, Brussels
www.sax200.be

Donkere kamers: Over melancholie en depressie (Dark Rooms: On Melancholy and Depression): Works by a diverse range of international artists illustrate centuries of the various facets of melancholy, revealing a long-standing artistic fascination with the condition and how it differentiates itself from its contemporary, pathologised counterpart, depression.
Until 31 May, Guislain Museum, J Guislainstraat 43, Ghent
www.museumdrguislain.be