July 25, 2025
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
The annual light show and Dickens Village at the Wanamaker Building is set to return this holiday season. The future of the Christmas traditions were unclear after longtime tenant Macy's shut its doors in March.
City officials launched plans Friday to bring back the holiday light shows, organ performances and Dickens Village to the former Macy's space in the Wanamaker Building.
The department store announced plans to close its Center City location in January and exited the premises in March. With that shuttering, it was believed that the Christmas programming put on by the chain would cease. But the Philadelphia Visitor Center, city government and the building's new owner, TF Cornerstone, said they intended to bring it back and opened a fundraising campaign to pay for the project's installation and maintenance.
"When we found out Macy's would be closing, it was my first thought, and I'm sure many of yours: What would happen to the light show in the Dickens Village?" said Kathryn Ott Lovell, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Visitor Center. "To imagine a future without this experience for my family, for your families, was simply heartbreaking because these aren't just holiday attractions, they represent the heart of our holiday season and the spirit of our city. That's when we knew we had to act."
The 10-minute light show was started in 1956 and featured holiday characters like Rudolph, Frosty and the Sugar Plum Fairy. It was set to Christmas music and narrated by Julie Andrews. It played multiple times per day during the holiday season. The Dickens Village let guests wander through a re-creation of Charles Dickens' classic book, "A Christmas Carol."
The Visitor Center launched a fundraising campaign, seeking $350,000 in public donations to pay for the attractions' return. As of Friday afternoon, $254,000 had already been raised — including a $100,000 grant from the Connelly Foundation and additional $100,000 match from the William Penn Foundation.
Lovell said about 2,000 people came to see every light show and 10,000 people per day stopped by the Dickens Village, according to Macy's data. In total, the holiday attractions in Center City, which includes the Christmas Village market outside City Hall, bring in 400,000 visitors and an estimated $31.7 million in economic benefits annually.
Ray Biswanger, executive director of the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ group, said that there was an outpouring of support for the attraction after Macy's announced its closure.
"Just four short months ago, as Macy's closed its doors, more than 10,000 people flooded these floors to pay tribute to the Wanamaker Organ," Biswanger said. "That statement made something very clear: traditions matter. Traditions help define who we are as a city. Traditions permeate our very souls."
In the leadup to the holidays, Opera Philadelphia also announced plans for fall programming involving the organ. Further details will be revealed later for the series, called Pipe Up, but Director Anthony Roth Costanzo said it includes organ concerts, vocal recitals, art installations, cabarets, and Halloween and Christmas programs in collaboration with BalletX, the Bearded Ladies Cabaret, Fringe Arts and Mural Arts. It kicks off with a concert called Meet Me at the Eagle at 1 p.m. on Sept. 7.
Earlier this month, the city approved zoning permits to TF Cornerstone's plans for the Wanamaker Building. The developer intends to add more than 600 housing units to the top six floors, including 13 bi-level lofts, plus two rooftop decks and a swimming pool for residents. The three lower levels are planned to house multiple retailers — no official tenants have been announced yet, but TF Cornerstone is seeking high-end stores and entertainment venues.
Both the front and console of the Wanamaker Grand Court Organ, which is the world's largest functional pipe organ, and the bronze Eagle sculpture, often a meeting place for families wanting to watch the light show, are on city's register of historic places.
