Have a New York Kind of Day During the Holidays

During the Christmas season, everyone should have a New York holiday kind of day. The one we’re detailing is particularly good if you happen to have kids in tow, but everyone will appreciate it.
Have plenty of stamina, and start off at the Ziegfeld Theater (141 West 54th Street). Though the original was razed, this gigantic theater is like nothing else around, bursting with more than 1100 seats. See “The Princess and the Frog,” the newest Disney offering, featuring the first African-American princess (she wants to run a restaurant--let’s hear it for girl power) and a return to hand-drawn animation. Before you go, check out Disney classics like “Snow White,” "Cinderella” and Sleeping Beauty” to remind yourself how fabulous these animated movies are.
When you’re done, surely you’ve forgotten to buy a gift for Aunt Frieda. Trek over to the Columbus Circle Holiday Fair, near the Time Warner Center. The same folks who bring us the Union Square Market have organized it, and the market features more than 100 vendors with a nice array of crafts and goodies. (Daily; 10 am-8 pm; Enter near the southwest entrance to Central Park at Central Park West and Central Park South; call 212 529-9262 for more info).
Finally, finish off your evening with Paul Winter’s 30th annual winter solstice celebration at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine (1047 Amsterdam Avenue; 212 316-7750). The concerts run tonight, tomorrow and Saturday, and feature Winter’s orchestra as well as a dance performance and special guests.
Tired yet? You will be—there’s always more to do tomorrow in New York at the holidays.

Lock Up Your Livestock! Monty Python is Back For One Night Only

Can it be? Can the creators of the Ministry of Silly Walks, the search for the Holy Grail, the flying cows over the battlements and other classic bits really be turning 40 this year? Indeed, they are: Monty Python celebrates the big 4-0 with a one-night-only reunion event at New York’s Ziegfeld Theater this Thursday, October 15, at 7:00 PM. Five of the original founders (John Cleese; Terry Gilliam; Eric Idle; Terry Jones; Michael Palin) will celebrate with a shortened screening of the documentary “Monty Python: Almost the Truth (The Lawyer’s Cut)”; followed by a Q&A session and reminiscences from the troupe. The film includes appearances by Lorne Michaels (“Saturday Night Live”); Eddie Izzard; and Jimmy Fallon, among others.
Oh, yes, word on the street is that there will also be a presentation of some type of award---but with the Pythons, who knows what that means.
Organized by the Independent Film Channel and The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), the event is scarce on tickets, but you can try calling the theater at (212) 765-7600.
And, in a spirit befitting the group, rumor has it that the sixth Python, Graham Chapman, who died in 1989, will also (somehow) be incorporated into the evening’s festivities.
Don’t ask.
A six-hour version of “Almost the Truth” will air on IFC on October 18.