Welcome to Fête City

Ready or not, the Holiday Season is now upon Lower Manhattan. Santa Claus is coming to Brookfield Place, now through December 24, from noon to 8:00 pm on Tuesdays through Fridays, 10:00 am to 8:00 pm on Saturdays, and 10:00 am to 6:00 pm on Sundays (closed Mondays, except December 24). Photos are available (for a fee), and there will also be a sensory-friendly Santa for children with special needs, on December 9 (from 8:30 to 10:00 am), presented in conjunction with Autism Speaks.

Tonight (November 30), tomorrow (December 1), and Sunday December 2, Brookfield will also present the New York Theatre Ballet’s performance of The Nutcracker. This evenings show is at 7:00 pm. Tomorrow, there will be performances at 1:00 pm and 7:00 pm. Ands Sunday’s show is at 1:00 pm.Also on Sunday, the Santa Paws event will welcome four-legged friends to Santa’s workshop, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm.

The Galli Theatre New York, newly located at 74 Warren Street in Tribeca presents live theater for the entire family. The Three Little Pigswill be presented on December 1 and 2 at 2PM. The Snow Queen will be presented on Dec 8 and 9, 15 and 16, and 22 and 23. For more information call 212-731-0668 or email at galliny@gmail.com. Their website is www.gallitheaternyc.com

An open-air Winter Village (coming to the rooftop of Pier 17 on December 14) is among the holiday festivities on tap for Lower Manhattan this year.

In the South Street Seaport, the rooftop of Pier 17 will become a public skating rink and Winter Village, opening on December 14. But the holiday begins at the Seaport on Monday (December 3) with a Holiday Block Party on the cobblestone plaza at 19 Fulton Street (between Water Street and Front Street). Starting at 5:00 pm, there will be a DJ spinning seasonal tunes, accompanied by free hot chocolate. At 6:00 pm, holiday treats and drinks from local Seaport eateries will be distributed, as the streetscape is transformed by a dramatic tree lighting.

Santa arriving at Battery Park City’s annual Holiday of Lights chauffeured by one of his helpers

The Battery Park City Authority will also host its annual Holiday Lightsceremony on December 6 (starting at 6:00 pm) in South Cove, complete with cookies, caroling (led by the acclaimed Sing Harlem Choir), and warm beverages. The Authority is also accepting donations of new, unwrapped gifts on behalf of Stockings With Care, a Battery Park City-based charity that conveys presents to families in need. Gifts can be brought to the December 6 Holiday Lights ceremony, or dropped off at 75 Battery Place anytime before December 6. Anybody wishing to volunteer for Stockings with Care, or donate directly to the organization is asked to browse: StockingsWithCare.org

Church Street School for Music and Art’s annual Gingerbread House Decorating Workshops at their new location, 41 White Street in Tribeca.

The Church Street School for Music and Art will continue a decades-long Downtown tradition by hosting its Gingerbread House Decorating Workshops and Parties for the next three Saturdays and Sundays — December 1 and 2, 8 and 9, and 15 and 16. In addition to offering great holiday fun, this event is one of the most important fundraisers for the highly regarded non-profit institution that has brought enrichment to the lives of generations of Lower Manhattan kids. For more information, or to make a reservation, please browse: ChurchStreetSchool.org.

And on Saturday December 8 at 6pm in the theater at PS276 (55 Battery Place in Battery Park City), the New American Youth Ballet Symphony Orchestra will perform “Nutcracker of the Stars” directed by Elizabeth Flores and conducted by Maestro Alan Aurelia. Ticket donations are $32.50 for adults and $25 for children. To text a ticket order, call 607-725-2560 or call 212-945-2926. Their website is newamericanyouthballet.org and their email is newamericanyouthballet@yahoo.com

At Westfield World Trade Center, the Holiday Market State within the Oculus, will feature a rotating lineup of holiday performers, including the Original Dickens Carolers (tonight at 7:30 pm), the Treble NYC a cappella ensemble (Sunday, December 2 at 7:30 pm), North River Sing Community Chorus (Sunday, December 2 at 2:00 pm), the Absolute Noel vocal quartet (Tuesday, December 4 at 7:30 pm), the Mistletones(Friday, December 7 at 7:30 pm), and the Harlem Gospel Choir (Sunday, December 9 at 5:00 pm).

Trinity Church will kick off the festive season with a Holiday Warm-Up on Thursday, December 6, at St. Paul’s Chapel (209 Broadway). This event will invite participants to share festive food, beverages, and live music, while wrapping presents and making holiday cards for the recipients of the Giving Tree, Trinity’s program to purchase gifts for children and mothers living in poverty, in New York and around the world. Guests are also encouraged to bring warm hats, scarves, and gloves for the underprivileged recipients of Trinity’s Brown Bag Lunch program.

On Sunday (December 2, at 2:00 pm in St. Paul’s Chapel), Trinity will offer a staged reading of “Scrooge & Marley,” based on Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol,” with parts (excepting Scrooge) played by children and teens.