HOLIDAY TRADITION
Twelfth Night virtual celebration planned for Jan. 6
CAPITALREGION, N.Y. » All are invited to participate in festive traditions of the 17th and 18th century at an upcoming virtual Twelfth Night celebration.
An online event titled Salutations of the Season, presented by local state historic sites Schuyler Mansion and Crailo, is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 6, with some demonstrations available on Tuesday, Jan. 5 to help attendees prepare for their Twelfth Night celebrations. The all ages event will be available across multiple social media platforms.
Twelfth Night, or the Feast of Epiphany, was one of the traditional holidays celebrated by the Dutch and English of 17th and 18th century New York. Falling on Jan. 6, Twelfth Night was the final holiday of the season, marked by unsurpassed feasting and revelry.
This year’s virtual event replaces an in-person gathering that is typically held between both historic sites in Albany and Rensselaer.
The idea behind the event is to revel in this feast day as the prominent historical Schuyler and Van Rensselaer families, who respectively inhabited the Schuyler Mansion and Crailo residences, once did themselves.
“It’s actually like attending a party,” interpretive programs assistant Michelle Mavigliano said, reminiscing on past Salutations of the Season events, an annual tradition that started about 15 years ago. “These types of events were always extremely popular.”
Though this year’s celebration will look a bit different, organizers have arranged for the occasion to include favorite features such as entertainment performances, holiday decorations, tasty treats, wassail toasts and the selection of the Twelfth Night King.
“We highlight the 18th century
ditions that existed in Albany,” Mavigliano explained, “because Christmas was actually a more solemn affair while Twelfth Night, or Epiphany, was the last day of the season and it became more of like the revelry day.”
This year, because large gatherings are not possible at the normal party sites, organizers are encouraging participants to hold their own private Twelfth Night celebrations and share in the merriment virtually by uploading photos on social media and tagging @ Schuyler Mansion and/or @ Crailo. “We want to see how you’re celebrating,” Mavigliano said, noting that the festivities were designed to be participatory, communal and entertaining.
“Take- Home Twelfth Night” kits including special party supplies and goodies will be available for purchase in early January at the Fort Orange General Store, located at 412 Broadway in Albany, for $20 each.
This virtual Twelfth Night event is an opportunity for folks to share the final day of the holiday season together.
Despite pandemic -related challenges, event leaders decided that the Twelfth Night tradition should continue in 2021, especially as people are separated. “The point of doing it,” Mavigliano said, “is to try to continue the community that we’ve always had at this time of year.”
Lots of area families have attended the Twelfth Night gathering for many years, Mavigliano continued. “So we’re trying to maintain this community, have a little bit of a celebratory type of experience, and keep the tradition alive.”
More information about the upcoming Salutations of the Season event is available online at parks.ny.gov/historicsites/schuylermansion and parks.ny.gov/historicsites/crailo. Schuyler Mansion is located at 32 Catherine Street in Albany’s historic South End and can be
contacted by calling (518) 434- 0834, while Crailo is located at 9 -½ Riverside
Ave. in Rensselaer can be contacted by calling (518) 463- 8738.