Times Square New Year's Eve Goes Virtual Due To Coronavirus

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — For the first time in more than a century, crowds will not flock to Times Square for New Year's Eve this year, organizers of the annual event said Wednesday, announcing that the pandemic will force the ball drop to become a mostly virtual occasion — with some limited in-person components.

The reworked celebration "brings Times Square and The Ball to you digitally no matter where you are," the Times Square Alliance, which co-produces the event, said in a news release Wednesday, adding that "scaled-back and socially-distanced live elements" are still being planned.

The ball drop has taken place almost every year since 1907, when it was first held as a promotional event for the New York Times, which owned the building at One Times Square. The drop was suspended in 1942 and 1943 during World War II, but crowds still gathered in Times Square and marked the new year with a minute of silence, according to the Times Square website.

Jamestown, the real estate company that now owns One Times Square, has developed a free app that will broadcast this year's event, organizers said.

A small number of honored guests will attend in person, reflecting the "themes, challenge and inspirations of 2020," organizers said, alluding to a few of the year's dominant news stories: the coronavirus, nationwide protests for racial justice, and other "economic and climate crises."

In the news release, Mayor Bill de Blasio praised organizers for "finding a safe, creative and innovative way" to ring in the new year.

Later Wednesday, de Blasio announced that the city had extended restrictions on outdoor activities through the end of the year, meaning other time-honored events like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade must be significantly reworked in order to be held at all.

Also Wednesday, the Metropolitan Opera announced it was canceling its entire 2020-2021 season due to the pandemic, as the number of events and institutions being reshaped by the pandemic continues to grow.