I still believe: Macy's Thanksgiving parade will include pre-taped Broadway performances, balloons will only float down one block and streets will be closed (but Santa and Rockettes WILL be there)
New York City's beloved annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade will look a little different this year where the helium balloons will float down just one city block without an audience and four Broadway musicals will perform pre-recorded numbers for the televised event.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic the parade, which usually draws 3.5million attendees along its traditional 2.5-mile route in Manhattan, will be converted into a television-only event that will be aired on NBC and Telemundo.
The 94th annual parade special will include Broadway performances by the casts of Hamilton, Mean Girls, Jagged Little Pill, Ain't Too Proud: The Life and the Times of the Temptations - all of which haven't hit the stage since March.
The event will see Broadway actors and dancers dust off their costumes and return to the stage for the first time in months and the numbers will be filmed within the next few weeks.
The show will also include celebrity appearances, performances by the Rockettes, and a vist from Santa Claus.
New York City's beloved annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade will look a little different this year where the helium balloons will float down just one city block without an audience and four Broadway musicals will perform pre-recorded numbers for the televised event. A view of the parade last year above
It'll be the first Broadway performances for Hamilton, Mean Girls, Jagged Little Pill, Ain't Too Proud: The Life and the Times of the Temptations since Broadway was closed in March due to the pandemic. A view of the Hamilton cast above
All the Broadway performances will be pre-taped and some will be social distanced. All performers will wear masks and be tested for COVID-19 and temperature checked prior to rehearsals. A view of the Jagged Little Pill cast above
However, due to the virus the rehearsals require planning to assure the actors are in shape and that proper coronavirus safety measures are being taken.
Sergio Trujillo, the Tony Award-winning Choreographer of Aint Too Proud, said he choreographed a special number to a medley of two Temptations hist - My Girl and Get Ready for the performance. He made it with social distancing in mind and only five dancers will be in it.
'Anything we can do to make sure our Broadway lovers stay engaged and invested,' Trujillo said to the New York Times.
The show will also include appearance by a ballerina from the New York City Ballet who will dance as the Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker show, a holiday classic, which has been canceled entirely this season.
All performers will receive coronavirus tests and temperature checks before convening and everyone must wear masks on set, but performers can remove them to sing.
Sergio Trujillo, the Tony Award-winning Choreographer of Aint Too Proud, said he choreographed a special number to a medley of two Temptations hist - My Girl and Get Ready for the performance. He made it with social distancing in mind and only five dancers will be in it. The cast of Aint Too Proud above
Usually Broadway shows perform live at the parade but this year producers said it would be impossible as some cast members are riding out the pandemic out of the state or out of the country.
The four performances that are included are being paid for by NBC.
Usually there are between 8,000 to 10,000 people working the parade, but this year there will be about 1,500, according to the event's executive producer Susan Tercero.
Usually millions arrive early in Manhattan braving the cold and long wait to catch a good spot to watch the parade.
This year there will be no in-person audience and the area surrounding the route will be shut down.
The giant balloons that are usually guided through the city by uniformed handlers will be pulled by utility vehicles to limit the number of people involved.
Any participants in the parade must also be at least 18 years old and cannot come from outside the tristate area.
This year the parade will travel just one block along 34th Street. The empty commercial street pictured above during the pandemic in April
Despite the differences this year, parade organizers assured Santa Claus will make his annual appearance (pictured above at least year's parade) along with the Rockettes
'We still wanted to deliver what people expect on a Thanksgiving morning. But it’s going to look like a parade during Covid times: We’re going to have people in masks and we’re going to be socially distanced,' Tercero said.
This year's parade will be hosted by Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker and includes a slew of celebrity appearances, as usual, including names like Jimmy Fallon and The Roots, Karol G, Tori Kelly, Patti LaBelle, Ella Mai, Miss America 2020 Camille Schrier, Lauren Alaina, Jimmie Allen and Noah Cyrus, Ally Brooke, Sofia Carson, CNCO, the cast and Muppets of Sesame Street, Leslie Odom Jr., Keke Palmer, Dolly Parton, Pentatonix, Bebe Rexha, Jordin Sparks, Sebastián Yatra, and Brett Young.
The parade will also include performances by talent that was supposed to perform at the canceled St. Patrick's Day Parade, the Pride March, the National Puerto Rican Day Parade and the West Indian American Day Carnival Association.