Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer
The lights will be shining again soon. After months of fundraising and planning, the Philadelphia Visitor Center announced Monday the official schedule for the 2025 season of the Wanamaker Light Show and Dickens Village. Beginning Nov. 28, the Light Show will return to the Grand Court of the Wanamaker Building, running six daily shows, from Wednesday to Sunday. On Dec. 12, the show will transition to seven daily shows, seven days a week. Dickens Village, an immersive, walk-through experience inspired by Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” also opens the Friday after Thanksgiving. Dickens Village will also initially be open five days a week, before transitioning to daily hours as Christmas grows closer. Both the Light Show and Dickens Village will open hours on Christmas Eve. The Wanamaker Organ, played by Grand Court Organist Peter Richard Conte and assistant organists, will accompany most shows. “This holiday season will be a homecoming for the Light Show, thanks to the more than a thousand Philadelphians who came together and decided these traditions were important for our city,” said Kathryn Ott Lovell, president & CEO of the Visitor Center, which organized the fund drive with Wanamaker Building owner TF Cornerstone. Both beloved Philadelphia holiday traditions were endangered when Macy’s closed earlier this year. In September, Save the Light Show organizers said that with over 700 individual donors and gifts from philanthropic foundations, they had raised enough to bring back both attractions this winter— and to begin planning for their future care. The event remains free for the public. Planners also said Monday that a new indoor holiday market inside the Grand Court, offering artisan gifts, seasonal treats, and handmade goods. A new pop-up, holiday eatery, “Holly and Humbug,” presented by FCM Hospitality will serve craft beer, seasonal cocktails, and warm winter fare. As part of the robust effort to preserve the shows, PECO now serves as presenting sponsor of the Light Show and Dickens Village, while PowerPay, a financial technology firm based in Wayne, joins as a major sponsor. Mike Petrakis, CEO of PowerPay, remembered taking the Market-Frankford El to the Wanamaker Light Show as a child growing up in TK, before bringing his own kids to the show. “I want the next generation to experience the same joy,” he said. The show’s return became a reality in October, when a team of planners from Macy’s Parade Studio — the New Jersey design facility that ran the light show, and builds the floats for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York — came to Philly last month. They spent days instructing new workers, including a donated crew of union electricians from IBEW Local 98,- how to install the show’s 154-branch towering tree, its 100,000 individual bulbs, and its paneled Santa, Sugarplum Fairies, and snowflakes. A cherished Philly holiday staple since 1956, the Light Show, which operates on suspended trusses and a digitized lighting and sound program, is directed from a tiny circuit room above the Grand Court known as “Frosty Central.” Volunteers will soon finish installing the 6,000 square feet of cobbled streets and animatronic figures of Dickens Village, planners said. Still, the total cost to install the and prepare for the Light Show and Dickens Village in a shuttered department store - including hiring staff, security, and clearing - exceeded initial expectations, running about $600,000, officials said. While this year’s show has been saved, the future of the Wanamaker Light Show remains unknown, even with donations from organizations, like the William Penn Foundation and the Connelly Foundation. With renovation of the building slated to begin in February — and expected to last two years, it’s likely the show will have to find a new home for at least that time. Whether a new permanent home is needed is a question that won’t be settled until new tenants for the building are announced. Fundraising efforts will continue to help sustain the show in the longterm, Lovell said. “We need the public’s help,” she said. Still, the announcement of this season’s shows made it all feel real, Lovell said. At least for one more year, she said, “Philadelphians will once again be able to gather inside the Grand Court, hear the Wanamaker Organ, and watch the lights dance to life.” November 28 - December 11, 2025 ● Monday-Tuesday: Closed ● Wednesday-Sunday: 12PM - 6PM ● The Light Show runs every hour on the half hour: 12:30 p.m.; 1:30 p.m.; 2:30 p.m.; 3:30 p.m.; 4:30 p.m.; and last show at 5:30 p.m. ○ Wanamaker Organ “live finale” will be included in the Light Show at 12:30 p.m.; 1:30 p.m.; 4:30 p.m.; and 5:30 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. ○ Wanamaker Organ concerts will follow the Light Show twice per day, approximately 12:45 p.m. and 4:45 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. December 12 - December 23, 2025 ● Monday-Sunday: 12PM - 8PM ● The Light Show runs every hour on the half hour: 12:30 p.m.; 1:30 p.m.; 2:30 p.m.; 3:30 p.m.; 4:30 p.m.; 5:30 p.m.; and last show at 6:30 p.m. ○ Wanamaker Organ “live finale” will be included in the Light Show at 12:30 p.m.; 1:30 p.m.; 4:30 p.m.; and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday. ○ Wanamaker Organ concerts will follow the Light Show twice per day, approximately 12:45 p.m. and 4:45 p.m., Monday through Saturday. December 24, 2025 November 28 - December 11, 2025 December 12 - December 23, 2025 December 24, 2025 To ensure a safe experience for all visitors, free, timed-entry tickets will be required for admission to Dickens Village.
