In addition to presenting the best in music, theatre, opera, and dance, the organizations at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts also carve out parts of their busy schedules to program many festive performances through January. 

As in the past few seasons, the holiday season gets off to an early start with the return of the beloved Big Apple Circus November 7 in Damrosch Park. The breathtaking feats of the Flying Maluendas and the Kung Fu Boys, along with many other acts, will be performed under the park’s big tent until January 4.

In David Geffen Hall’s Wu Tsai Theater, the New York Philharmonic’s annual holiday programming gets underway December 10–13 with four performances of Handel’s Messiah, presented by Gary W. Parr. Conducted by Baroque specialist Jane Glover, Handel’s masterwork will be sung by soprano Amanda Forsythe, countertenor John Holiday, tenor Nicholas Phan, and bass Kevin Deas, along with the Music of the Baroque chorus.

The orchestra’s mega-popular series The Art of the Score returns with the perfect holiday presentation: the smash 1990 movie Home Alone, which introduced Macaulay Culkin as Kevin, an enterprising eight-year-old left behind when his family leaves for Christmas vacation and who fends off inept home invaders. The jaunty John Williams score will be played live by the orchestra and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus under conductor Constantine Kitsopoulos (December 17–20).

Returning for its second year is the NY Phil’s Sounds of the Season (December 13–14 matinees), in which conductor Naomi Woo leads the orchestra in festive music including Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Christmas Overture, Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Greensleeves, and selections from Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite No. 1, and Vince Guaraldi’s revered A Charlie Brown Christmas.

The New York Philharmonic’s Take a Breath series and Lincoln Center’s Art of Wellbeing series combine to present Songs of the Season (December 6, Clark Studio Theater). Philharmonic musicians and the Unsung Collective unite with the audience in a singalong that highlights how shared musical experiences can greatly support mental health, especially at such a special time of the year.

Holiday perennials returning to Lincoln Center are led by New York City Ballet’s dazzling production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, which has been in the company’s repertoire since 1954. Tchaikovsky’s much-adored music, coupled with Balanchine’s ingenious choreography, makes for an all-ages delight at the David H. Koch Theater from November 28 to January 3. 

The Metropolitan Opera brings back its presentation of the abridged, English-language version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute in Julie Taymor’s colorful and lionized production (December 11–January 3). Alternating in the pit will be conductors Erina Yashima and Steven White, alternating the role of Pamina will be American sopranos Joélle Harvey and Erin Morley, and alternating the virtuosic Queen of the Night will be Russian Aigul Khismatullina and American Rainelle Krause.

Now in its 13th year of beguiling Rose Theater audiences, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s magical Big Band Holidays (December 16–21) features the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by trombonist and arranger Chris Crenshaw, putting the swing into favorite yuletide tunes, with vocals by a pair of stunning singers: Shenel Johns and Juilliard alum Kate Kortum. The December 21 matinee will be a relaxed performance, designed for people with autism, sensory and communication disorders, or learning disabilities.

At Alice Tully Hall, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s annual Baroque Festival events begin with two performances of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons (December 6 and 7), followed by a pair of J.S. Bach programs: Bach Cantatas (December 9)—vocal music sung by soprano Joélle Harvey, tenor Paul Appleby, and baritone John Moore—and the master’s complete Brandenburg Concertos (December 12–16), played by 20 of the most accomplished musicians in New York. 

Lastly, a new holiday tradition might be underway at Lincoln Center Theater, with its first performances of Gian Carlo Menotti’s enchanting Amahl and the Night Visitors, an opera about the wonders of the holiday season that’s perfect for families. Presented in association with the Metropolitan Opera, Amahl will be directed by Tony winner Kenny Leon and will feature superstar mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato (December 16–January 4).