Beyond Broadway: It's Christmastime in the City (and the Theater)

New York City is a veritable immersive production this time of year: dazzling lights, singing in the squares and a supporting cast of too many tourists. There’s plenty of Christmas spirit of the literally theatrical variety to be found too, with time-tested stories, comfort food and melodies sweet enough to last the whole year long.

WHITE CHRISTMAS
Paper Mill Playhouse, until December 29

This holiday season, give yourself the gift of escaping New York City. A quick train ride will bring you to Millburn, New Jersey’s Paper Mill Playhouse where a production of White Christmas is ready to wrap you in a warm blanket of nostalgia and Irving Berlin melodies. Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen made the original 1954 film a Christmas staple with their winsome double-showmance and close-harmonies that wring all meaning from the word “snow.” You get all of that and more from Paper Mill’s cast of Broadway vets, led by Max Clayton, Casey Garvin, Ashley Blanchet and Keely Beirne—a quartet that brings back to life an idyllic world where original musicals are the only remedy for a failing economy and a drag show can get you out of any scrape.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL AT THE MERCHANT'S HOUSE
Merchant's House Museum, until December 26

‘Tis the season for Charles Dickens’ notorious ghost story—and one of the cooler ways to experience it is with Summoners Ensemble Theatre’s annual A Christmas Carol at the Merchant’s House. Since 2013, John Kevin Jones has been performing his 70-minute solo version of the Dickens novella, playing the 19th-century author himself who has come to New York City to indulge audiences in a series of readings. The Merchant’s House, a Manhattan landmark built on East 4th Street in 1832 and longtime home to the wealthy Tredwell family, is a plausible stop on his tour and turns the performance into a piece of time travel. Whether you’re a history fanatic or want to up your chances of a real spectral encounter as ghosts of the past, present and future are being beckoned, this Christmas Carol will envelop you in ways you’ve never experienced before. And as a bonus, there are virtual tickets if you can’t make it to the NoHo venue in person.

THE DEAD, 1904
American Irish Historical Society, until January 5, 2025

The home of the American Irish Historical Society, a circa-1900 townhouse on the Upper East Side, is the exquisite venue for an intimate, immersive retelling of a James Joyce novella centering on a cozy dinner party. Like a gentle Sleep No More for bookish types, The Dead, 1904 transports guests to a family celebration in turn-of-the-century Dublin—there’s melancholy music; unrushed movement between the lobby, parlor, dining room and upstairs library; and a holiday meal inspired by Joyce's mouth-watering prose. The stars of the show include roast turkey breast stuffed with sprigs of parsley and herbs, beef tenderloin with fig and cocoa glaze and Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin.

ANNIE
Madison Square Garden, until January 5, 2025

We’re getting a new Annie for Christmas! The word from Chicago, where this national tour kicked off in November, is that this production heralds the arrival of an astonishing new talent. Well, yes, 12-year-old Hazel Vogel’s performance as the plucky orphan is by all accounts wonderful. But we’re perhaps just as excited to see the New York theatrical debut of Kevin, a shaggy seven-year-old labradoodle from Georgia, whose performance as Sandy has been described as utterly transformative. Oh right, and the wicked Whoopi Goldberg steps into the role of Miss Hannigan in New York too. A heartwarming reminder—just in case anyone needs it right now—that the sun'll come out tomorrow.