Santa Claus Actor – Knott’s Merry Farm

Job Position(s): Santa Claus Actor - Knott's Merry Farm

Knott’s Berry Farm is hiring a Santa Claus Actor for its annual Knott’s Merry Farm holiday event in Buena Park, CA. This is a live entertainment performance role within the park’s seasonal character department, requiring sustained character work and guest-facing improvisation across daily show sets from late November through Christmas Eve. It suits a performer with stage or theme park experience who can hold a character under pressure and read a crowd in real time.

About the Role

The Santa Claus Actor position sits inside Knott’s Berry Farm’s Entertainment division, reporting to show directors and Entertainment leadership during the Knott’s Merry Farm season. Performers work multiple days per week across the full run, from November 20, 2026 through December 24, 2026, with training beginning in early November. A typical shift involves extended on-stage character performance, direct guest interaction, and vocal improvisation grounded in holiday storytelling traditions.

Key Responsibilities

• Performing the Santa Claus character as scripted and as conceived by show directors, maintaining character integrity throughout each set.
• Executing vocal improvisation and storytelling in the moment to engage guests of all ages in a live entertainment environment.
• Staying fully in character while on-stage and in guest sightlines, treating every guest interaction as part of the performance.
• Delivering guest service consistent with Six Flags standards, including initiating interactions, answering questions, and providing accurate park information without breaking character context.
• Maintaining safety compliance in assigned performance areas and reporting any unsafe conditions to supervision.
• Meeting scheduling requirements across weekdays, weekends, nights, and holidays for the full contracted season.

What You Bring

• Prior live entertainment performance experience, theme park character work, or stage acting background is preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to sustain a character role for extended periods while wearing heavy costume and makeup.
• Working knowledge of holiday stories, traditions, and lore sufficient to build spontaneous, believable interactions.
• Bilingual ability is a plus for serving diverse guest demographics at a high-volume theme park.
• Must be 18 or older and able to pass a background check per company policy.

Why This Role

Knott’s Berry Farm runs one of Southern California’s most established seasonal live entertainment programs, with Knott’s Merry Farm drawing significant family audiences each holiday season. This Santa Claus Actor position is compensated at $20.65 per hour for a defined seasonal contract running through December 24, 2026. For performers building credits in theme park entertainment or seasonal character performance, this is a structured, well-supported production context.

Apply now for the Santa Claus Actor role at Knott’s Berry Farm and bring your performance experience to one of the region’s signature holiday productions.