Due to the on-going COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, the annual Macy’s Parade, for the first time in its more than 90-year history, will be modified to safely bring the magic to more than 50 million viewers nationwide on Thanksgiving Day, while maintaining all of the spectacle and wonder of this cherished holiday tradition.
This year the celebration will shift to a television only special presentation, showcasing the Macy’s Parade’s signature mix of giant character helium balloons, fantastic floats, street performers, clowns and heralding the arrival of the holiday season with the one-and-only Santa Claus.
For nearly 100 years, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been synonymous with the official start of the holiday season in the United States. Growing from a two block-long collection of Macy’s colleagues dressed in whimsical clown outfits, playing instruments and adorning floats in 1924, to the world-famous spectacle we know today, at the core of the Macy’s Parade has been the warm memories that fill the hearts and minds of generations of American families.
To safely produce this icon of American culture during this unprecedented time, Macy’s partnered with the City of New York to create a safe plan that would keep the tradition alive. Following the success of this summer’s reimagined Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks® show, the Macy’s team meticulously reviewed every area of the Thanksgiving Day playbook to put in place enhanced health and safety practices that align with CDC guidelines, as well as local and state government protocols.
The safety of participants and spectators is Macy’s number one priority and this year’s 94th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade celebration will be produced solely as a television event allowing millions of New Yorkers and the nation to safely experience it from the comforts of home.
As part of Macy’s comprehensive health and wellness plan a number of changes will be implemented in order to execute this event safely. These changes include, but are not limited to the following:
- Reducing the overall number of participants by approximately 75%, and splitting the remaining participants over two days
- All participants will be appropriately socially distanced during performances and be required to wear face coverings and additional personal protective equipment depending on their role
- Shifting to a television-broadcast-only production with staging for Parade elements focused solely in/ around the Herald Square area of Midtown Manhattan
- The traditional 2.5-mile Parade route will not be utilized this year
- No participant in the Parade will be under 18 years of age
- Previously selected regional High School and College Marching Bands performances will be deferred to the 2021 Macy’s Parade, with locally based professional marching and musical ensembles taking musical duties in the lineup
- Macy’s traditional Giant Balloon Inflation public event on Wednesday will not take place
- Macy’s signature giant character balloons will be flown without the traditional 80-100 handlers and instead employ an innovative, specially rigged anchor vehicle framework of five specialty vehicles tested and approved by the NYCDOT and NYPD
The 94th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will air nationwide on NBC-TV, Thursday, November 26, 2020 from 9:00 a.m. to Noon, in all time zones. For more information visit macys.com/parade. To follow and participate in the excitement, check out @macys on various social platforms and follow #MacysParade.
Unfortunately, there seems to be a couple of fixtures missing from this years Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade: Nickelodeon's Shimmer & Shine float and the Red Power Ranger balloon.
About Nickelodeon's Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons and floats:
SpongeBob SquarePants & Gary Balloon
SpongeBob SquarePants will make his 16th appearance in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. In 2004, SpongeBob made history as the Parade’s first-ever square balloon and this year, In 2019, SpongeBob returned from his parade hiatus to take to the sky with his pet snail Gary in tow. The brand-new SpongeBob balloon, which stands at 44-feet high, 36-feet wide and 46-feet long takes on his unique shape with the help of more than 800 internal tie-lines that pull the single chamber sphere balloon into a square.
Chase from PAW Patrol Balloon:
Hailing all the way from Adventure Bay, this fearless rescue pup from the number-one preschool series, PAW Patrol, is ready to come to the ruff-ruff-rescue and show the citizens of New York that “no job is too big, no pup is too small.” The German Shepherd will journey from Adventure Bay to Manhattan’s skyline as a giant character helium balloon. Making its maiden flight in 2017, the balloon features Chase donning his signature navy blue police uniform and measuring 43.3 feet high, 36.2 feet wide and 59.8 feet long,
Blue's Clues & You! Float
Nickelodeon’s playful pup Blue, will be making a return to the annual holiday spectacle on her brand-new float that will showcase a 22-foot tall Blue, inspired by the look and feel of the new series Blue’s Clues & You!, a remake of the groundbreaking interactive series, Blue’s Clues. Covered in 13 pounds of glitter, Blue will shine down the Parade route as she greets fans of all ages. Blue's new float was introduced in 2019. Did you know: Blue has been marking clues in the Parade since 1999; she’s been both a balloon and a float!
Performer: Ally Brooke
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Float
Rising from the city sewers to save the day, the wildly popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles—Raph, Leo, Donnie and Mikey—are equipped with an irreverent sense of humor and action-packed moves to fend off the bad guys. COWABUNGA! Introduced in 2018, the Rise of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles float gives the crowd a glimpse into the Turtles’ secret lair hidden beneath the New York City streets.
Performer: CNCO.
Update (11/11) - Pop star Ally Brooke (The Casagrandes) teased on Twitter: "So excited to announce that I’m going to be a part of this year’s #MacysParade! Doing something special with
@Nickelodeon 💙 Can’t wait🤗🍁😍🦃 #Macys"
Originally published: Wednesday, October 28, 2020.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Have your say by leaving a comment below! NickALive! welcomes friendly and respectful comments. Please familiarize with the blog's Comment Policy before commenting. All new comments are moderated and won't appear straight away.