They’re seeing red over Bloomies’ green Santa.
As part of a “holiday partnership” with the cinematic event “Wicked,” Santaland at the Bloomingdale’s 59th Street flagship has been “Oz-ified” to be more Emerald City than North Pole. There are pink Christmas trees, wand lollipops instead of candy canes, “Wicked”-themed bracelets and jolly old St. Nick wears a green — not red — suit with elaborate gold details.
For many, Santa’s extreme makeover isn’t making the “nice list.”
“Just a heads up if your child is expecting Santa in his traditional red and white suit, Bloomingdale’s is only offering green Santa. We left a bit disappointed without a photo,” wrote a dejected mom on a local Facebook group last week. “I just wanted to share in case other people were thinking about taking their kids to see Santa and want a traditional photo.”
For some, Mr. Claus’s new look goes against the true spirit of Christmas and is especially galling amidst the huge “Wicked” marketing blitz and a cringe-inducing press tour for its two stars, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivio.
“Leave Santa alone. Not everything needs to be changed or challenged,” Melanie, an Upper West Side mother-of-one, told The Post. There’s “no reason to have a green Santa except to promote a movie in an already overly commercialized holiday. Green Santa is stupid … Hard pass.”
Kids are also struggling with the change.
On Saturday at “Wicked” Santaland, an emerald-clad elf admitted that babies take one look at Santa and start crying.
“I think it’s because he’s green,” the holiday helper told The Post .
Six-year-old Jada Robinson was “very, very, very surprised” about green Santa.
Red is “more Christmas-y,” the East Village first grader said. (The Post has reached out to Bloomingdale’s for comment.)
One dad said he made a point of telling his children about the color change ahead of time to prevent potential meltdowns.
“It can throw some kids off — we told them in advance,” he said.
Santa Doug, Bloomingdale’s in-house Santa since 2019, was kept in the dark until the eleventh hour about his wardrobe switcheroo. It’s his first time not wearing his classic red suit, and he only found out about his outfit changes last month.
But, he noted that it is mainly parents, not kids, who miss the crimson.
“It’s mostly the adults who ask, ‘Why aren’t you in red, Santa?’” he said. His response is usually a jolly laugh and a quip along the lines of “Well, we’re in the Emerald City.”
Other Santas say they wouldn’t be so easygoing.
“I’m traditional — and proud of that,” said Tim Connaghan, the 77-year-old founder of the School4Santa who has been playing Father Christmas since he was a 20-year-old in Vietnam.
If he were asked to wear green, he said he’d likely decline the job.
“I’d leave it to another Santa,” he said. “I’m always in a red suit, except on my own time.”
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