You’re not interested in standing out in the cold to see 50,000 lights adorn New York City’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, but still want to celebrate the start of the holiday season. You’re no Scrooge, after all.
The annual tree lighting ceremony, “Christmas in Rockefeller Center,” will air on NBC Wednesday, so you can watch along from the warmth of your apartment. This year’s lighting takes place with the help of the anchors of “Today” — Hoda Kotb, Savannah Guthrie, Al Roker and Craig Melvin — and 11 celebrity guests.
The tree-lighting ceremony begins at Rock Center at 7 p.m., and the artists are expected to take to the stage at West 48th and West 51st streets between 8 and 9 p.m.
The 72-foot Norway spruce from upstate Wallkill will be decked out with multicolored LED holiday lights, and topped off with a new Swarovski crystal star weighing 900 pounds while performers such as John Legend and Diana Ross sing holiday classics beneath it.
Livestream details are below, but the tree stays lit throughout the season from 5:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. through Jan. 7, if you want to go see it yourself on a (slightly) less-crowded evening.
NBC
The network is airing a preshow hosted by Mario Lopez, Stefan Holt and Natalie Pasquarella, so you can start watching the festivities live starting at 7 p.m. Official “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” programming follows the preview, and remains live from 8 to 10 p.m. Cord-cutters can watch without a TV in the NBC mobile app, or online at NBC Live. A valid cable service provider login will be required.
Social media
NBC hasn’t yet announced plans for an official social media livestream of the performances, but follow along on the network’s YouTube, Twitter and Facebook pages for behind-the-scenes footage.
