City Sights, Holiday Cheer
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

Come December, New York City is teeming with ways to celebrate the holidays. Entertaining friends and family members from out of town is only a matter of picking the right sights, staying warm, and keeping the holiday spirit as the crowd jostles around you.
For those with a love of the performing arts — or those who want to cultivate it in the hearts of youngsters — New York City Ballet’s staging of George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker” is a must-see. This enduring classic starts with a heartwarming scene of a family holiday party, and then gives way to a balletic dream complete with toys that come to life, a majestic Christmas tree, and a trip to a candy-colored wonderland. The ballet is danced not only by company professionals, but also by students in the School of American Ballet (until December 30, Lincoln Center, NewYork State Theater, between 62nd Street and Columbus Avenue, 212-307-4100).
Parents who seek a condensed version of the ballet can book tickets to New York Theatre Ballet’s one-hour “Nutcracker.” The NYTB staging was created to cater to children between 3 and 10 years old, and it maintains all the magic cast by the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Land of the Sweets (December 2–17, Florence Gould Hall, 55 E.59th St., between Madison and Park avenues, 212-355-6160).
And that’s not all. “The Yorkville Nutcracker” adds a bit of New York history to the traditional ballet. Presented by Dances Patrelle, this version is set in Gracie Mansion on Christmas Eve 1895, where newly elected mayor William L. Strong is hosting a party for his children. The production incorporates New York landmarks and historical personalities. Each year, the lead dancing roles are performed by guest stars. Jenifer Ringer and Stephen Hanover from New York City Ballet will dance the evening performance on December 9 and two performances on December 10. Melissa Morrissey, of Dance Theatre of Harlem, and Matthew Prescott, of Complexions, will dance two performances on December 8 and the matinee on December 9 (December 8-10, Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College, 68th Street between Park and Lexington avenues, 212-722-7933).
Also on stage this time of year is the 73-year-old revue “Radio City Christmas Spectacular.” Things have been spruced up a little: Mrs. Klaus now carries a BlackBerry. But as always, the real draw is the team of sequin-clad Rockettes, whose synchronized high kicks grace numbers including “The “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” and “Happy Feet” (until December 30, Radio City Music Hall, 1260 Sixth Ave., between 50th and 51st streets, 212-307-7171).
Just across the plaza is the Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center. The outdoor rink with piped in music accommodates 150 skaters and is open for the holidays at 8:30 a.m. If you’d rather watch the cavorting on skates, dining at the Sea Grill offers a view of the revelers. Executive Chef Edward Brown’s $79.95 holiday menu — with main dish choices including crab cakes, Nova Scotia lobster, or Australian barramundi — is on offer through January 1 (skating until January 7, Fifth Avenue, between 49th and 50th streets, 212-332-7654; Sea Grill, 19 W. 49th St. at Rockefeller Plaza, 212-332-7610).
Not far from the ice rink is some of the best public art of the season —most of which is a year in the making — in the form of shop windows. A brilliant light show of 50 10-story snowflakes on display on the exterior of Saks Fifth Avenue was inspired by the photographs of William “Snowflake” Bentley, whose groundbreaking research on snow and rain from the first decade of the 20th century was printed in the Monthly Weather Journal and Appleton’s Popular Scientific Monthly. In the storefront windows, an Art Deco landscape embellished with glittering flakes, ice crystals, and thousands of Swarovski crystals has created a snowy winter scene (611 Fifth Ave. at 50th Street).
At Bergdorf Goodman, designer David Hoey has plundered eBay, fine antique shops, and every archive in between to create dense windows unified by the theme “The Art of Celebrating.” On a recent evening before the unveiling, Mr. Hoey peered at a window marked “Entertain,” where a polar bear in a silk bow tie had come to the door. He looked puzzled as pondered the scene. “This needs something,” he said, before he decided the mannequin, draped in a white frock, needed a gift for her furry host. A colorful mosaic scene labeled “Cultivate” recalls Paul Gauguin’s Tahiti. But it is the window titled “Decorate” that drew a crowd of viewers recently. A decadent gingerbread dining room is filled with multitiered cakes, sugared cookies, frosted confections, and — incredibly— not a single pastry is edible (754 Fifth Ave. at 58th Street).
A sense that “this year would be big for all things [Andy] Warhol” propelled the creative director for Barneys New York, Simon Doonan, who is celebrating 20 years as a window dresser for the fashion emporium. “Every year I enjoy it more and I appreciate it more,” he said. “Andy designed shop windows for Bonwit Teller early in his career, and he was said to have enjoyed the chance to share his work with so many people.” Mr. Doonan said he enjoyed creating “wacky” windows for the same reason. The display celebrates the various stages of the pop artist’s career, including his years as an illustrator, a “Factory boy,” and a social butterfly (660 Madison Ave. at 61st Street).
In the city’s performance halls, this season promises music for concertgoers of all stripes. If traditional vocal works appeals to your vision of the holidays, Dicapo Opera Theatre’s onenight-only Carrolle Singe is the place to be. This year’s program includes Gounod’s Messe solennelle de Sainte Cecile, Bach’s Sheep May Safely Graze, and long list carols including “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” “Jingle Bells,” “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” and “Lift Every Voice” (December 13, St. Jean Baptiste Church,76th Street at Lexington Avenue, 212-759-7652).
Guest conductor Alastair Willis makes his Carnegie Hall debut next month, leading the New York Pops in a program for which he told The New York Sun he was “striving for a balance; some serious, some lighter.” The festive concert ranges from the traditional to the theatrical — on the bill are “Havah Nagilah,” Rossini’s “La Boutique Fantasque,” and Bernstein’s “Glitter and Be Gay” from “Candide.” (December 15–16, 8 p.m., 54 W. 57th St. at Seventh Avenue, 212-247-7800) As part of “The Wainwright Family & Friends Celebrate Christmas,” Martha and Rufus Wainwright — the progeny of folk luminaries Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle — will also perform a program of traditional holiday songs at Carnegie Hall (December 13, 8 p.m.).
The New York Philharmonic presents Handel’s “Messiah,” a majestic oratorio written by the German composer in a mere three weeks. Featured performers include the Westminster Symphonic Choir (December 20–21, 7:30 p.m., December 22–23, 8 p.m., Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Dr. at 120th Street, 212-870-6700).
Drummer Herlin Riley, pianist Dan Nimmer, trombonist Wycliffe Gordon, a guitar and banjo player, Don Vappie, and others will join the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, Wynton Marsalis, for “Red Hot Holiday Stomp,” a spirited New Orleans rendering of holiday classics (December 14, 8 p.m., Jazz at Lincoln Center, Rose Theater, 33 W. 60th St. at Broadway, 212-258-9800).
At Feinstein’s, where gentlemen still wear jackets and white-gloved gentility prevails, Michael Feinstein returns to his supper club accompanied by an allstar band for a holiday concert series. Mr. Feinstein will interpret seasonal and cabaret standards (tonight and November 30, preview, December 5–30, Feinstein’s at the Regency Hotel, 540 Park Ave. at 61st Street, 212-339-4095).
Among the museums, the Morgan Library & Museum offers an inside look at a piece of Christmas literature. On display are Charles Dickens’s original manuscripts of “A Christmas Carol,” which the author wrote in the course of six weeks prior to Christmas in 1843.
(Until January 7, Morgan Library & Museum, 225 Madison Ave. at 36th Street, 212-685-0008).