How the Thanksgiving Day Parade Costumes Come Together
The best part of Thanksgiving varies depending on who you ask. Some people thrive in the chaos of the kitchen; others look forward to munching on appetizers while watching back-to-back NFL games. And then there are those of us whose all-time favorite tradition is tuning into the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, a cornerstone of American culture viewed by millions across the country annually.
The event is always a spectacle — it has marching bands, thousands of volunteers dressed in character, celebrity appearances, performances by Broadway stars and the world-famous Rockettes, gigantic floats towering over the streets of New York City, and so much more. But it’s also sentimental for so many who grew up watching it in their living room, surrounded by friends and family waiting for the turkey to come out of the oven. Chances are, if the parade is part of your Thanksgiving tradition, it holds a special place in your heart.
Ahead of this year’s 98th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which will take place on Thursday, November 28, and air on NBC and Peacock from 8:30 a.m. to noon in all time zones, we asked Macy’s associate producer and costume director, Kimberly Montgomery, and creative director of the parade, Brendan Kennedy, all of your questions about the thousands of costumes that bring it to life.
Who makes the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade costumes and how long does it take?
It’s a team of about 12 people. “They start in September and help us coordinate all 5,000 costumes,” Montgomery says. “We also recruit about 250 one-time payees for parade day. That includes about 70 makeup artists, 150 dressers, and operational people.” Meanwhile, the full-time Macy’s employees who work on this event year-round have already started planning the 2025 parade. “We are truly always planning,” Kennedy says. At the time of our interview, six days before Thanksgiving, all of his hard work was starting to come together. “I’m excited to see the joy on people’s faces when they see what we’ve created. I’m becoming very Zen. We’re ready. We’re good.”
How are the Macy’s Day parade costumes chosen?
Fans of the parade know that each segment tells a story. Some are inspired by film or television shows, like the famous Snoopy float, while others are skits featuring recognizable objects (this year, for example, Montgomery says viewers can look forward to watching large-scale bowling pins “run away” from their bowler). The official parade partners help determine which floats will be included — once Montgomery and her team have this information, they start building out stories and creating costumes to enhance each one. “The floats are sort of little Broadway shows on wheels. We’ve got to costume them, create an environment, and create a focal point,” she says.
How do people get into the costumes?
Unsurprisingly, logistics are of the utmost importance; pulling off a nearly 6,500-person parade in the middle of Manhattan is no small feat, especially when you throw props, balloons, floats, and 5,000 costumes into the mix. Here’s how it works: On parade morning, all participants arrive at designated ballrooms and large event venues throughout the city with their official digital entry pass. Once checked in, they’re directed to a room based on their assigned role in the parade (clown, banner carrier, stilt walker, etc.). Inside the room, they’ll find a rack of costumes organized by name in alphabetical order. After the participants change into their costumes, they’re ready to march!
What happens to the Macy’s Day parade in the case of bad weather?
The parade marches from Central Park West to the Macy’s store in Herald Square, rain or shine. In its 100-year history, the event has only been suspended twice, from 1942 to 1944 to conserve materials for World War II. “If it rains, we have ponchos that everyone will be issued,” Montgomery says. “We’ve done it before in 2006. Everyone was soaked to their soaks but they went out in their ponchos and had a great time. I don’t think there’s much that can stop this parade.”
Participants are also prepped on the importance of layering, and the costumes fit intentionally oversized so people have room to wear coats underneath if necessary. “We talk to everyone and make sure they know they’ll be outside for several hours and walking for 2.5 miles,” Kennedy says. “We make sure everyone is taken care of, even the folks we don’t outfit like the marching bands and various performance groups.” In extreme cases — like in 2018 when the temperature dropped to 19 degrees — Montgomery says the route could change for children marching in the parade. “That year, we didn’t line up the kids at the starting line. We lined them up at 36th Street and let them walk around the corner so they wouldn’t get too cold. But honestly, in my 25 years of doing this job, that was the only time we ever did that. We want to be safe, of course, but we pretty much go rain or shine.”
How does the sizing work?
Montgomery, a professional performer and Broadway veteran who starred in Les Misérables and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing, knows “costumes that don’t fit or function well can really limit what an actor can do.” Once participants sign up online, their sizing information is pulled from the database before they’re assigned to a float costume, balloon costume, clown costume, etc. “That way we know, for the most part, everybody’s costume will fit. We want everyone to feel fabulous on parade day. We don’t want them to feel embarrassed because their costume doesn’t fit, whether it’s too big or too small.” She also has plenty of backstage tricks up her sleeve in case size adjustments are needed on parade morning, including tag guns that make hemming a breeze.
Which new Macy’s Day parade floats should we look out for?
One new float that Kennedy is particularly excited about is inspired by something every New Yorker will recognize and appreciate: the grab-and-go breakfast. Characters named Lox and Java will parade down the street as tricloons (Macy’s name for a tandem tricycle that pulls a massive inflatable behind it). Lox will be a giant bagel wearing a salmon lox hair bow; Java will look exactly like a classic bodega coffee cup. “The very New York part of it is that they will be followed by two inflatable pigeons named Cookie and Crouton,” Kennedy says. “As a born Brooklynite, this is very much me trying to show up in my Timberlands and be like, ‘We are here. This is New York, we are Macy’s, and we’re giving a gift to the world’.”
Wait, there is a scented float at the Macy’s Day parade?
Sure is! Beloved home-fragrance brand Nest teamed up with artificial Christmas tree provider Balsam Hill to scent the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. That’s right, the floats you see marching down Sixth Avenue will not only look like the holiday season, but they will also smell like it for the first time ever. (New Yorkers, if this isn’t a good enough reason to go watch the parade in person this year, I don’t know what is.)
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