A Guide to N.Y.C. Holiday Events: Music, Lights and More

The holidays have arrived in New York City. Festivities of all sorts, from annual classics like “The Nutcracker” to ice skating and twinkling light displays, are opening for the season. Here’s a list of shows and events to attend.

‘The Nutcracker’

At Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater, the New York City Ballet will present its annual “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker” (Nov. 29-Jan. 4), with more than 125 children in two alternating casts from the School of American Ballet and a one-ton Christmas tree that grows to more than 40 feet tall. A sensory-friendly performance will take place on Jan. 5.

Brooklyn will see a bevy of works reimagining the classic. Two are hip-hop ballet versions, with “The Brooklyn Nutcracker” at The Theater at City Tech (Dec. 12-15) and “The Hip-Hop Nutcracker” at Kings Theater (Dec. 23). “The Hard Nut” at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (Dec. 12-22) sees the story through a lens of witty cartoon Americana.

At the Lehman Center for the Performing Arts in the Bronx, the Westchester Ballet Company, a youth troupe of dancers from 6 to 18 years old, will perform “The Nutcracker” (Dec. 13-15). And at the Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College in Queens, the New York Theater Ballet will present its one-hour version for ages 3 and up, with choreography by Keith Michael (Dec. 1).

‘The Magic Flute’

The Metropolitan Opera will present its annual family-friendly, abridged version of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” with the director Julie Taymor’s signature fantastical puppets (Dec. 12-Jan. 4). Tickets for the Dec. 14 matinee will double as entry for the Met’s Holiday Open House, with demonstrations by the Met’s musicians, actors, dancers and backstage and artistic staff.