‘Advent Carolndar’
Musical Advent calendars, counting down to Christmas with a different recorded tune each day, have found their living, breathing match in this show from Julia Mattison (“Death Becomes Her”) and Joel Waggoner, which has escaped the bonds of cabaret for a run in the Public’s Shiva Theater. Expect dozens of brief, original comic carols and some cozy yet terrible Christmas sweaters, as tradition demands. (Dec. 4-15, Public Theater)
‘Amahl and the Night Visitors’
The Olivier Award-winning mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato sings the role of the harried mother in Kenny Leon’s new staging of Gian Carlo Menotti’s classic 1951 short opera about a poor boy (Albert Rhodes Jr.) who finds three kings (Phillip Boykin, Bernard Holcomb and Todd Thomas) on his doorstep, following a brilliant star on their way to bring gifts to a newborn. (Dec. 16-Jan. 4, Lincoln Center Theater)
Big Apple Circus
Pitching its inviting blue tent over a stretch of Lincoln Center Plaza each holiday season, this is a circus with tricksy dogs rather than elephants and plenty of acrobats and derring-do. It’s such family-friendly entertainment that a child under age 2 seated in the lap of a ticket holder doesn’t need a ticket. (Through Jan. 4, Damrosch Park)
Chelsea Community Church Candlelight Carol Service
Clement Clarke Moore, who may or may not have written the classic Christmas poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas,” once owned the land where St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood now stands. The centerpiece of this nondenominational holiday service is a reading of the poem — which was originally published anonymously and may have been written by Henry Livingston Jr. — by the Broadway actor Karen Mason (“Mamma Mia!”). (Dec. 14, St. Peter’s Church)
‘A Christmas Carol’
The Tony Award winner Michael Cerveris stars as the money-hoarding misanthrope Ebenezer Scrooge in the British director Matthew Warchus’s spin on Charles Dickens’s ghostly cautionary tale. With a script by Jack Thorne (“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”), it scooped up four Tonys for design (those glowing lanterns!) and another for Christopher Nightingale’s score (that handbell chorus!) after it went to Broadway in 2019. Returning to New York for the first time since then, it is staged more immersively in this downtown incarnation. (Through Jan. 4, Perelman Performing Arts Center)
‘A Christmas Carol at the Merchant’s House’
One of the hottest tickets around in December 1867 was Charles Dickens, filling capacious halls with throngs of admirers on his American tour. When he performed “A Christmas Carol,” The New York Times reported, he “spoke from memory,” leaving his audience “completely spell-bound.” That visit is the inspiration for this far more intimate production, in which Dickens (John Kevin Jones and Vince Gatton, alternating shows) recounts the tale in the parlor of this rowhouse, built in 1832. (Through Dec. 27, Merchant’s House Museum)
‘Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes’
On this list, only one show can truly call itself a New York icon, inextricably identified with the city. At the center of that deliberately over-the-top Christmas pageant are the gloriously high-kicking Rockettes, precision-athletic in their synchronized dance. They are the show’s human wow factor, framed by one of the most beautiful, and identifiable, performance spaces in Manhattan. (Through Jan. 5, Radio City Music Hall)
‘It’s a Wonderful Life!’
Frank Capra’s 1946 heartwarmer about George Bailey, an Everyman in crisis at Christmastime, is retold as a live radio drama amid period music in Charlotte Moore’s staging of Anthony E. Palermo’s script. An ensemble of six plays all of the roles, including Mary Hatch, who marries George; Mr. Potter, who menaces him; and Clarence Oddbody, the angel (second class) who shows George what his hometown would look like if he’d never been born. (Through Dec. 31, Irish Repertory Theater)
‘The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show’
Jinkx Monsoon, familiar most recently to Broadway audiences for playing the title character in Cole Escola’s “Oh, Mary!,” makes an annual habit of teaming up with her close pal and fellow “RuPaul’s Drag Race” alum BenDeLaCreme for a new version of this singing, dancing, seasonal comedy, which they write afresh each year. (Dec. 4, Kings Theater)
‘Justin Vivian Bond: Crushed Ice!’
The Ghost of Christmas Future comes into play in this new show from Justin Vivian Bond, the rare MacArthur Fellow who is also a cabaret artist. “I’ve always thought of cabaret as a form of political resistance,” Bond has said. The idea with this production is to provide a little light when the world feels dark. (Dec. 10-21, Joe’s Pub)
‘Merry Mayhem’
Tumbling, archery and the flying trapeze promise to figure in this colorful, comedy-filled show by Circus Oz, a contemporary troupe from Australia. Performed to live rock music, it’s recommended for ages 5 and up. (Dec. 5-28, New Victory Theater)
‘The New York Nutcracker’
Lincoln Center isn’t the first place you would expect to find burlesque, let alone the kind that’s strictly for age 18 and up. That’s the surprise of this “Nutcracker” parody by Pearls Daily, which incorporates dance, comedy and shadow puppetry. (Dec. 18, David Rubenstein Atrium)
‘Nutcracker Rouge’
Company XIV, specialists in decadent spectacle, have had an enduring success with this burlesque riff on the ballet, essentially dousing it in sex. Definitely not one for the children. (Through Jan. 31, Théâtre XIV)
‘Taylor Mac’s Holiday Sauce’
Bringing a hefty dose of glamour to the comfort and joy, Mac’s musically sumptuous festive-season extravaganza has an enveloping spirit of welcome, particularly for people who find standard-issue holiday celebrations an uncomfortable fit. Directed by Mac and Niegel Smith, the show surrounds Mac with longtime co-conspirators (including the invaluable Matt Ray as bandleader and Machine Dazzle as costume-design genius and featured performer) and this year introduces two new songs to the mix. Also not for kiddies, by the way. (Dec. 19, the Town Hall)
‘Twas the Night Before…’
The title of this Christmas-themed Cirque du Soleil show is borrowed from the first line of the famous poem, but storytelling takes a backseat to acrobatics and abundant sparkle in a child-friendly musical production boasting elves, aerials and roller-skating. Santa’s comical reindeer, playing their reindeer games, add a requisite dash of warmth and darlingness. (Dec. 4-28, Theater at Madison Square Garden)
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