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 has made the naughty 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 social media. “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, Santa’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,” wrote another user on social media. One dad said he made a point of telling his children about the color change ahead of time to prevent potential meltdowns. Santa Doug, Bloomingdale’s in-house Santa since 2019, was kept in the dark until the eleventh hour about his Wicked wardrobe switcheroo. It’s his first time not wearing his classic red suit, and he only found out about his outfit changes last month. Tim Connaghan, the 77-year-old founder of the School4Santa that trains people to portray Father Christmas, said if he were asked to wear green he would likely decline the job.
