NEW YORK – Employees of the Macys department store since 1924, prepare the famous Thanksgiving parade that marks the official start of the holiday season. The Thanksgiving Day parade takes place at the streets of New York City, its 2.5 mile route and also known as the world’s longest stage,with 3.5 million spectators every year…
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade celebration is still happening this year. The 94th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will air from 9 a.m. to noon Nov. 26 on NBC. While the festivities have historically drawn millions of spectators to the streets of Manhattan, this year all activity will be focused on the Herald Square area of Midtown, and the only way to watch will be on television.
Like so many things in 2020, modifications have to be made in order for this legendary American parade to safely continue. Susan Tercero the Executive Producer of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade explained to NY! Channel:
“We are pushing for this tradition so that when you wake up Thanksgiving morning, you know what to do, you can turn on, you can rely on us for a little bit of fun entertainment and some relief to what’s been going on,”
“This year’s parade is certainly going to be different, but it’s going to feel familiar to a lot of people. Since safety is our top priority. We limited our participation rates overall for the parade to, about 30% of what we would normally have,”
“As we’ve seen year after year, no matter what happens, New York City especially, is this very strong community of survivors of people who can get through just about anything. And I think this parade is also a symbol of that,”
This year, to discourage onlookers from gathering, the public inflation of the balloons won’t be happening, and the parade itself will be starting just blocks from the iconic department store on 34th street.
Wesley Whatley, the creative producer of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade reporting to NY1 said about this year’s parade:
“We can look at a parade and say, oh, it’s just a parade, but I think it’s more than, and that’s why I think we’re so passionate this year of keeping the tradition alive,”
Rick Pomer, creative director of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade said:
“The fact that we are able to do this is incredible. It’s remarkable. And we know that we’re going to pull it off and we’re going to keep pulling it off and pushing it forward every year hereafter,”
Cover Photo by: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
