The 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2023)

The 96th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2022)

The 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2023)

The 98th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2024)

The 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
One of the promotional posters for the 2023 Parade. (Artwork: Mattson Creative)
Date	November 23, 2023
Parade #	97
New Giant Balloons	Beagle Scout Snoopy by Peanuts Worldwide Leo by Netflix Monkey D. Luffy by One Piece/Toei Animation Inc. Kung Fu Panda's Po by Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Animation The Pillsbury Doughboy by Pillsbury
New Novelty Balloons	Blue Cat & Chugs by Cool Cats Uncle Dan by Illumination
New Floats	Camp Snoopy by Peanuts Worldwide Igniting Memories by Solo Stove Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem by Nickelodeon and Paramount The Deliciously Delectable World of Wonka by Warner Bros. Pictures Palace of Sweets by Brach's
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The 97^th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held on November 23, 2023, in New York City, and shown to viewers live on NBC and Peacock that same day from 8:30 a.m. to noon EST. The broadcast was hosted by Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker. The lineup featured 16 giant helium balloons, 33 heritage and novelty balloons, 26 floats, more than 700 clowns, 12 marching bands, nine performance groups, a host of musical stars, and the one-and-only Santa Claus.

Parade Lineup

Listed below are the parade elements that appeared in the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. They are categorized by unit type, with their respective sponsors in bold. Home locations of talent ensembles are featured in brackets, and guest star’s float appearances are indicated in bold.

Bold denotes a new parade element, an underline indicates a unit that was brought back after an absence, a strikethrough signifies a parade unit that was sidelined before or during the march, and an asterisk (*) indicates an element that was retired after the 2023 Parade.

Balloons

Giant Balloons

• Beagle Scout Snoopy (Peanuts Worldwide) - 1st time
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Abrams Books) - 2nd time
• Bluey (BBC Studios) - 2nd time
• SpongeBob SquarePants & Gary (Nickelodeon) - 5th time
• DINO and Baby DINO (HF Sinclair) - 2nd time
• Leo* (Netflix) - 1st time
• Goku* (Toei Animation Inc.) - 5th time
• Ronald McDonald (McDonald's) - 3rd time
• Chase from PAW Patrol* (Spin Master Ltd. and Nickelodeon) - 7th time
• Stuart the Minion (Universal Pictures/Illumination) - 2nd time
• Grogu* (Funko and Lucasfilm) - 3rd time
• Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece/Toei Animation Inc.) - 1st time
• Kung Fu Panda's Po (Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Animation) - 1st time
• Red Titan from Ryan's World* (Sunlight Entertainment and pocket.watch) - 4th time
• Pillsbury Doughboy (Pillsbury) - 1st time
• Pikachu & Eevee (The Pokémon Company International) - 3rd time

Novelty Balloons

• Gold Macy's Stars* (Macy's) - 6th time
• Acorn* (Macy's) - 6th time
• Pumpkins (Macy's) - 2nd time
• Smokey Bear (U.S.D.A. Forest Service) - 5th time
• Yellow Macy’s Star* (Macy’s) - 7th time
• Blue Cat & Chugs* (Cool Cats) - 1st time
• Baby Shark* (Pinkfong and Nickelodeon) - 2nd time
• Blue & White Macy's Star (Macy's) - 6th time
• Uncle Dan* (Illumination) - 1st time
• Gold Macy’s Star (Macy’s) - 4th time
• Candy Cane* (Universal Orlando Resort) - 2nd time
• Poinsettia Ornaments (Universal Orlando Resort) - 6th time
• Snow Crystal Ornaments (Macy's) - 10th time
• Tiptoe (Macy's) - 3rd time
• “Believe” Star (Macy’s) - 8th time

Balloonicles

• Baby DINOs (HF Sinclair) - 6th time
• Go Bowling* (Go Bowling) - 6th time

Trycaloons

• Tough Guy & Bulldog* (Macy's) - 12th time
• Nutcracker & Mouse King (Macy's) - 11th time

Floats

• Tom Turkey (Macy's) - 6th time
• Camp Snoopy (Peanuts Worldwide) - 1st time
• Igniting Memories* (Solo Stove) - 1st time
• Harvest in the Valley (Green Giant) - 7th time
• People of First Light* (Macy's) - 2nd time
• Big City Cheer! (Spirit of America Productions) - 8th time
• Geoffrey's Dazzling Dance Party (Toys"R"Us) - 2nd time
• Big Turkey Spectacular (Jennie-O) - 4th time
• The Wondership (Wonder) - 2nd time
• Baby Shark* (Pinkfong and Nickelodeon) - 2nd time
• Colossal Wave of Wonder (Kalahari Resorts and Conventions) - 3rd time
• Celebration Gator* (Louisiana Office of Tourism) - 3rd time
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Nickelodeon and Paramount) - 1st time
• The Brick-Changer (The LEGO Group) - 5th time
• Magic Meets the Sea* (Disney Cruise Line) - 3rd time
• Birds of a Feather Stream Together (Peacock) - 3rd time
• 1-2-3 Sesame Street (Sesame Workshop) - 19th time
• The Deliciously Delectable World of Wonka* (Warner Bros. Pictures) - 1st time
• Deck the Halls (Balsam Hill) - 7th time
• Fantasy Chocolate Factory (Kinder) - 5th time
• Elf Pets* (The Lumistella Company) - 5th time
• Heartwarming Holiday Countdown (Hallmark Channel) - 9th time
• Palace of Sweets (Brach's) - 1st time
• Winter Wonderland in Central Park (Macy's) - 12th time
• Macy's Singing Christmas Tree* (Macy's) - 7th time
• Santa's Sleigh (Macy's) - 15th time

Specialty Units

• NYPD Motorcycles - 39th time
• Storr Tractors Company Banner (Storr Tractors Company) - 1st time
• Ram Trucks Banner (Ram Trucks) - 1st time
• One Man Band* (Macy's) - 1st time
• NYC Parks Mounted Unit - 35th time
• Star Sound Unit 1 (Macy's) - 16th time
• Big Red Shoe Car (McDonald's) - 24th time
• NYPD Mounted Unit - 96th time
• Good Burgermobile* (Nickelodeon and Paramount+) - 1st time
• "Santa Is On His Way" Banner (Macy's) - 1st time
• A Merry Moment* (Universal Orlando Resort) - 1st time
• Star Sound Unit 2 (Macy's) - 14th time
• Winter Dragon* (Macy's) - 2nd time
• Macy's REO Delivery Truck (Macy's) - 21st time
• Star Sound Unit 3 (Macy's) - 11th time

Toy Floats

• Rocking Lobster (Macy's) - 35th time
• Rocking Moose (Macy's) - 8th time
• Rocking Horse (Macy's) - 65th time

Marching Bands

• Alabama A&M University Marching Maroon & White (Huntsville, AL), performed "Nutcrack-ah”
• The Band Directors Marching Band (Nationwide), performed "Big Apple Medley"
• Rutgers University Marching Scarlet Knights (Piscataway, NJ), performed "Spice Up Your Life"
• Macy's Great American Marching Band (Nationwide), performed "Cheeseburger in Paradise"
• Mercer Island High School Marching Band (Mercer Island, WA), performed “Holiday Road”
• Greendale High School Marching Band (Greendale, WI), performed "I Just Can't Wait to Be King"
• NYPD Marching Band (New York, NY), performed "Vivir Mi Vida"
• Texas Tech University Goin' Band from Raiderland (Lubbock, TX), performed "Wreck 'Em Fanfare"
• O'Fallon Township High School Marching Panthers (O'Fallon, IL), performed "Joy"
• Jenison High School Marching Band (Jenison, MI), performed “Deco"
• Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Eagle Regiment Marching Band (Parkland, FL), performed "The Polar Express" / "Believe"
• Fishers High School Marching Tiger Band (Fishers, IN), performed "The Nutcracker Suite"

Guest Stars

• Hoda Kotb (Tom Turkey)
• Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, performed "Find Your People" (Igniting Memories)
• Broadway Cast of Shucked, performed "Corn" / "Independently Owned" (Harvest in the Valley)
• Miss America 2023 Grace Stanke (Big City Cheer!)
• Jax, sang "Are You Gonna Be My Guy" (Geoffrey's Dazzling Dance Party)
• Paul Russell, sang "Lil Boo Thang" (Big Turkey Spectacular)
• Chicago, performed “You’re the Inspiration” (The Wondership)
• ENHYPEN, sang "Keep Swimmin' Through" (Baby Shark)
• En Vogue, sang “Free Your Mind” (Colossal Wave of Wonder)
• Amanda Shaw and Alex Smith, performed "Bootshake" (Celebration Gator)
• Bell Biv DeVoe, sang "Poison" / "Act Like You Know" (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem)
• Manuel Turizo, sang “La Bachata" (The Brick-Changer)
• Mike Aulby (Go Bowling)
• Captain Minnie Mouse, Captain Mickey Mouse and Friends, performed "Let's Set Sail" (Magic Meets the Sea)
• Ronald McDonald, Grimace and Hamburglar (Big Red Shoe Car)
• Jabari Banks, sang "We Are the Champions" (Birds of a Feather Stream Together)
• U.S. Olympian Jordan Chiles and U.S. Paralympian Jessica Long (Birds of a Feather Stream Together)
• Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell (The Burgermobile)
• Back to the Future: The Musical, performed "It Works" and "Back In Time"
• The Cast of Sesame Street and Ashley Park, sang "Best Christmas Ever" (1-2-3 Sesame Street)
• Wonka Dancers, performed “Pure Imagination” (The Deliciously Delectable World of Wonka)
• Jessie James Decker, sang "Tangled In Tinsel" (Deck the Halls)
• Pentatonix, sang “Please Santa Please” (Fantasy Chocolate Factory)
• David Foster and Katharine McPhee, performed “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” (Heartwarming Holiday Countdown)
• Brandy, performed "Someday at Christmas" (Palace of Sweets)
• Jimmy Fallon & The Roots, sang "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)" (Winter Wonderland in Central Park)
• Macy's and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Choir, sang "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (Macy's Singing Christmas Tree)
• Cher, sang “DJ Play a Christmas Song”
• The Radio City Rockettes, performed “Christmas Lights”
• Santa Claus and Sheryl Lee Ralph as Mrs. Claus (Santa's Sleigh)

Special Characters

• Macy's Starlets
• Dapper Turkeys (Tom Turkey)
• Turkey Tech Gobbler
• Charlie Brown, Lucy and Linus (Camp Snoopy)
• Geoffrey the Giraffe Inflatable (Geoffrey's Dazzling Dance Party)
• Geoffrey the Giraffe (Geoffrey's Dazzling Dance Party)
• Jellyfish (Colossal Wave of Wonder)
• Mermaid (Rocking Lobster)
• Leo, Raph, Donnie and Mikey (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem)
• Frantic Bananas
• Raider Red
• Lumberjack (Rocking Moose)
• Candy Canes (A Merry Moment)
• Elf on the Shelf Scout Elves (Elf Pets)
• Clara (Nutcracker Trycaloon)
• REO Truck Passengers (Macy's REO Delivery Truck)
• Candy Girl (Rocking Horse)
• Jingle Bells
• Elves (Santa's Sleigh)
• Sleigh Driver Elf (Santa's Sleigh)

Performance Groups

• Spirit of America Cheerleaders (Nationwide), performed "Rihanna Medley"
• Brickhouse NYC (New York, NY), escorts for Paul Russell (Big Turkey Spectacular)
• Texas Tech Pom Squad (Lubbock, TX), escorts for Alex Smith and Amanda Shaw (Celebration Gator)
• Boss Kids (New York, NY), escorts for Bell Biv DeVoe (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem)
• Cornell Bhangra (Ithaca, NY), performed "26 Boulevard" and "Laklaare"
• Harlem Globetrotters (Harlem, NY)
• Spirit of America Dance Stars (Nationwide), performed "Disco Medley"
• MVSA Studios (Kendall, FL), escorts for Pentatonix (Fantasy Chocolate Factory)
• Tap Dancing Christmas Trees (Alameda, CA), performed "Getting in the Mood for Christmas"
• St. John's Dance Team (Queens, NY), dancers for Cher
• Tiptoe's Winter Guard (Nationwide), performed "Tiptoe Winterscapes"
• Phantom Limb Company (New York, NY), puppeteered Tiptoe

Pre-Parade Acts

• Jon Batiste, sang "Worship"
• Harlem Globetrotters, performed "Sweet Georgia Brown"
• Big Apple Circus
• & Juliet, performed “Confident”
• Spamalot, performed "Laker Girls Cheer" / "Knights of the Round Table" / "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life"
• How to Dance in Ohio, performed "Getting Ready for the Dance" / "Building Momentum"

Clowns

• Turkey Tech Players & Sports Fans - 13th time
• Corny-Copia Clowns - 19th time
• Camper Clowns - 1st time
• Funny Farm Clowns - 29th time
• Artist Clowns - 19th time
• Nutty Professor Einsteins & Wacky Graduates - 22nd time
• Birthday Party Clowns - 28th time
• Clown Kazoo Band* - 1st time
• Alphabet Clowns - 5th time
• Parade Brigade Clowns* - 7th time
• Silly Seaside Clowns & Sailors - 24th time
• Jester Clowns with Queen of Hearts* - 13th time
• City Tourist Clowns - 9th time
• Baseball All-Star Clowns - 21st time
• Keystone Cops - 5th time
• Funny Firefighter Brigade - 2nd time
• Funny Bone Medical Team - 2nd time
• Malt Shop Clowns - 16th time
• Spacey Clowns* - 3rd time
• Pirate Plankster Clowns* - 2nd time
• Circus Clowns* - 11th time
• Macy's Superheroes - 4th time
• Funny Flurry Clowns - 5th time
• Half-Baked Holiday Sweets - 16th time
• Wintertime Clowns* - 6th time
• Nutty-Cracker Ballet Clowns - 13th time
• Holiday Clowns - 16th time
• Slumber Party Clowns - 6th time
• Sleepy Clowns - 23rd time
• Santa's Toy Box & Rag Doll Clowns - 5th time

Stilt Walkers

• Roosters - 16th time
• Pencils - 11th time
• Sea Anemone - 8th time
• Mardi Gras* - 3rd time
• Peg Leg Pirate - 9th time
• Parrot - 7th time
• Lumberjill - 1st time
• Nutcrackers - 16th time
• Christmas Trees - 8th time
• Holiday Candy Puppeteers - 3rd time
• Elves - 6th time
• Goldie Guards - 3rd time
• Snowflakes - 10th time
• Toy Soldiers - 2nd time

Clown Vehicles

• Produce Vehicle with Clown Driver - 29th time
• School Bus Vehicle - 13th time
• Taxi Cab Vehicle with Clown Driver - 14th time
• Fire Truck Clown Vehicle with Clown Driver - 17th time
• Half-Baked Delivery Truck - 7th time

Trivia

• The NBC broadcast of the 2023 Parade achieved the highest number of viewers in the NBC broadcast's history, attracting 28.5 million viewers (including streams on Peacock)—a 6% increase from the previous year.
• Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells of Broadway's Gutenberg! The Musical! appeared as live correspondents along the Parade route on NBC's broadcast.
• Guest stars interviewed on the NBC telecast included Jimmy Fallon (The Tonight Show), Olympians Kelly Chang and Sara Hughes with Paralympian Ezra French, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, Abigail Spencer (Extended Family), Lacey Chabert (Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up), and Andy Cohen (Watch What Happens Live). Leslie Odom Jr. was also planned (but failed) to make an appearance.
• Reba McEntire (The Voice), Melissa Rauch (Night Court), and Lauren Alaina recorded Thanksgiving messages for the NBC telecast.
• Beyoncé provided a special holiday message on the telecast, giving viewers the first look at a trailer for her film Renaissance.
• Several additional cameras (including drone cameras) were added along the route, giving viewers of NBC's Parade coverage never-before-seen vantage points.
• Macy's hosted a "celebrity viewing area" at its 34th Street grandstands; celebrities who attended included Andy Cohen, Lacey Chabert, and Flavor Flav.
• The 2023 Parade was the first to utilize the rebranded promotional campaign produced in collaboration with design studio Mattson Creative.
• The Ice Cream Cone balloon and Macy's Express Train float were planned to make an appearance, but were later pulled from the lineup.
• This was the first parade since 1993 to not include the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
• The NBC broadcast received a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Daytime Special.

NBC Credits

• Executive Producers: Brad Lachman and Bill Bracken
• Directed by: Joe DeMaio
• Written by: Meggie McFadden and Matt Lachman
• Music Director: Ray Chew
• Coordinating Producer: Carmela Tripodi
• Producer: Matt Lachman
• Supervising Producer: Adam Wald
• Production Supervisor: Nicole Gauthier
• Art Director: Ed Helbig
• Script Supervisor: Becky Wahle Camp
• Tape Producer: Shaun Smith
• Line Producers: Cate Gropper and Jana Lerner
• Technical Managers: Barry Sprague, Aaron Sasson, Joe Cocozza
• Production Managers: Hatice Soyal and Nick Cohen
• Music Manager: Jaynell Grayson
• Music Production: Al Theurer
• Segment Directors: Brad Lachman and Alex Vietmeier
• Associate Directors: Adam Mishler, Marty Pasetta Jr., Bill Bracken, John Coleman, Casey B. Davis, Janine DeVito, Dawn Dicicco, Renee Goldkorn, Susan Kramer, Amy Mancini
• Stage Managers: Eddie Valk, Joey Despenzero, Jeff Leib, Kevin Lishawa, Julie Lorusso, Linda Spadaro-Carrizzo, Tom Ucciferri
• Production Coordinators: Dabney Rauh, Matthew Fodera, Jonathan Jackson, Amanda LaRae Price
• Script Coordinator: Hayley Broderick
• Music Coordinator: Scott Siegel
• Production Assistants: Doug Gallo, Alex Austin, Matt Balfour, Peter Charney, Antonia Chiarelli, Lauren Chorlton, Abby Damouras, Rachel Koch, Samantha Lemza, Megan Parr, Christian Powell, Leah Pye, Andrew Ramallo, Katie Reif, Matt Schmittdiel, Julia Schemmer, Sara Vandivier, Sam Wilde, Bailey Wilkinson
• Technical Director: Dave Saretsky
• Announcer: Les Marshak
• Lighting Directors: Geoff Amoral and Rick McGuinness
• Backtimer: Molly Gray
• Staging Lead: Carps & Props: Hillary Byrne
• Post Production Supervisor: David Emanuele
• Editors: Colin Dow and Noah Rosenstein
• Senior Audio: Jorge Silva, Chris Acker, Dave Swanson
• Audio: Greg Acker, John Ariz, Jay Carrie, Mel Cubero, Frank Duca, Will Finan, Josh Flower, Ricardo Gomez, Jack Goodman, Andrew Guberman, Holly Murray, Chris Prinzivalli, Andrew Puccio, Jason Ruggles, Christian Schrader, Bob Selitto, Ryan Stotts, Jim Tomlinson, Gianluca Trombetta, Jim Van Bergen, Amanda Wong
• Graphic Design: Michael Cole and Mark Perricone
• Xpression: Layne Dornstein
• Senior Video: Oliver Bosill
• Video Record: Alan Buchner
• Video: Taylor Dees, Chris Halloran, Ed La Vin
• Video Playback: Kevin Hamel, Marc Nathan, Chris Rider
• Cameras: William Angelucci, John Atkinson, Dan Balton, Marc Bloomgarden, Ryan Celecia, Dan Erbeck, Robert Feder, Mike Gemelli, Keith Greenwood, Jake Hoover, Ray Hoover, Kat Kallergis, Evans Kotsis, Toré Livia, Martin Marietta, Ben Parsons, Vin Rega, Ron Rigoli, Mike Simon
• Chopper Team: Rob Angelos, Kevin Chupka, Tom Zweier
• Drone Team: Pablo Barrera, Stas Bilyavskiy, Stuart Bryce, Chris Chepiga, Jose Gonzalez, John Graham, Dexter Kennedy, George Konnaris, Edward Kostakis, Konstantinos Kostakis, Dennis Mancia, Dylan O'Keefe, Tyler Poland, Adam Troeger
• Promotional Consideration Furnished by: Parkwood Entertainment, State Farm
• Special Thanks to: Mayor's Office of City Wide Events, NYCDOT, NYPD, Mayor's Office of Media & Entertainment, Macy's Parade Families & Dedicated Volunteers

For Macy's Studios

• Executive Producer: Wil Coss
• Creative Producer: Wesley Whatley
• Parade Producers: Jordan Dabby, Kathleen Donohue Wright
• Line Producer: Carolynn Kolinsky
• Studio Operations: Lenny Drenski
• Associate Producers: Sara Flores, Kimberly Montgomery
• Publicity: Christine Olver Nealon, Orlando Veras, Ryan Gannon, Gabriella Boresi
• Talent Producers: The Talent LA
• Production Managers: Katherine Christakos, John De Leon, Carolyn Dellisanti, Robert DiGiovanni, David Fershadt, Jenna Geniale, Tanner Glaves, Elizabeth Gonzalez, Charles Hoppe, Paul Lopacinski, Mackenzie Schroeder, Nicola Shackman-Ryden, Erin Stief, Evelyn Tam
• Studio Production: Gerard Angelella, Justin Briggs, Emily Black, Rudy Botelho, Christian Bracco, Cameron Carnivale, John Cheney, William Cooney, Alyssa Devers, Brian Drew, Simon Fisher, Matt Guarino, Matthew Hoffer, Devon Holland, Josephine Hong, Eric Hudspeth, Alexander Kanderis, Paulo Krasulja, Tina Pfefferkorn, Noelle Rasco, Thomas Schnackenberg, Cory Stallworth, Gregory Thompson, Cory Watson
• Production Coordinators: Carolina Arboleda Rueda, Liz Colabraro, Nerissa Diaz, Robin Erichsen, Eric Gelb, Joann Lewis-Slaughter, Darlene Peaco, Kylie Remley, Lauren Rossi, Jordana Terrel, Rose Tibbets, Geneva Wilson, Matthew Taft

See also

• The 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade/Gallery
• The 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Marching Order