It’s a Christmas Miracle! The Wanamaker Light Show Will Return This Year

Macy’s (née Wanamaker) Christmas Light Show in holiday seasons past / Photograph by Laura Swartz

When Macy’s closed this year, it left a huge hole in Philadelphia — not just our downtown retail scene, but in the holiday memories of so many who’d grown up watching the Christmas Light Show and organ in the Wanamaker Grand Court since 1956.

But good news, everyone: The Light Show will return! And the animatronic Dickens Village, too. At least for the 2025 holiday season.

The Philadelphia Visitor Center, in partnership with TF Cornerstone, who bought the Wanamaker Building, just announced a campaign to raise roughly $350,000 to support the return of both the Light Show and Dickens Village this holiday season, while also laying the groundwork for their long-term preservation. You can donate right now at savethelightshow.org.

“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,” Kathryn Ott Lovell, president and CEO of Philadelphia Visitor Center, said at this morning’s press conference announcing the news.

Kathryn Ott Lovell, president and CEO of Philadelphia Visitor Center, holds a Phambassadors sign — one of many she created especially for the campaign to save the Wanamaker Light Show. / Photograph by Laura Swartz

The Visitor Center and TFC will oversee installation and public access — which will remain free — to the attractions. The money they need to raise will cover installation, staffing, even electrical work needed to make the show run. And good news: They’re already close to their goal. The William Penn Foundation pledged to match up to $100,000 in donations — and that was already met, thanks to the Conshohocken-based Connelly Foundation. Add to that $10,000 each from the Pennsylvania Convention Center, PPA executive director Rich Lazer, and Visit Philly president and CEO Angela Val.

The Visitor Center is also working with the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ, who staged farewell concerts four months ago when Macy’s closed. “Christmas in the grand tradition is alive and well in Philadelphia,” said the Friends group executive director, Ray Biswanger, at this morning’s announcement, echoing Julie Andrews’s iconic Light Show narration. He also announced that, in addition to the Light Show and Dickens Village, there will be daily free organ concerts in the Wanamaker Grand Court during Light Show season.

And while the Wanamaker Light Show is a charming cultural touchstone, saving it is also a smart economic move for the city. A study by Econsult Solutions estimates that 400,000 unique attendees visit the Light Show and Dickens Village each year — and nearly half of those people come from outside the city. This contributes an estimated $31.7 million in total economic impact to Center City.

But wait, there’s more! A separate but aligned initiative is taking shape to reopen the Wanamaker Grand Court this September for free performances. For four months, the space will host a pop-up performing arts hub, offering a glimpse of what a more permanent cultural future there could look like.

Anthony Roth Costanzo, general director and president of Opera Philadelphia, announced the series, called Pipe Up!, alongside TCF and the Visitor Center. “We aim to remind Philadelphians that the Wanamaker Building belongs to them and make it the place to be. While there will be plenty of opera singing, we are having collaborative conversations with many amazing artists and organizations in our community and developing ideas that will make the Wanamaker come alive with dance, theater, cabaret, and visual art,” said Costanzo. You can expect performances from Bearded Ladies Cabaret, BalletX, and FringeArts, among other arts organizations. Programming will begin with a kickoff concert, titled “Meet Me at the Eagle,” on Sunday, September 7th.

Celebrating the return of the Wanamaker Light Show at the Eagle / Photograph by Laura Swartz

What happens after all this, however, is less certain. Major renovations to the building are scheduled to begin early next year, potentially rendering the Grand Court unusable for much of that time. Whether the Light Show can continue to call the Wanamaker Building home remains an open question. For now, it sits in storage: quiet, still, and waiting to be brought back to life.