Musement shares five ideas for making your New Year’s Eve in New York even more memorable.
5,4,3,2,1..Happy New Year! New Year’s Eve, like Christmas, is one of the grandest holidays of the year in New York City — it can certainly be a one if you plan accordingly! Yes, you can be one of the millions bundled up in Times Square for hours in the cold…but there are so many other options to ring in the New Year…
1. Run Away
Do you want to get a jump start on your New Year’s resolution this year? Kick-off the New Year at the New York Road Runner Midnight Run in Central Park. Start 2020 with a healthy outlook via a four-mile race. The festivities begin about two hours prior to midnight with a pre-race soiree at Rumsey Playfield that includes a DJ dance party, stage show, photo boots, circus performers and more. The highlight of the evening is the fireworks display at midnight to kick off the race! Spectators get to experience the show and the runners feel the exhilaration of running as the fireworks go off. Runners are even treated to Sparkling Cider toasts along the race route. It might be a cold night, but getting a running start on your 2020 goals is a great way to start the New Year!
2. Go “Phish”-ing
If you want to start the New Year with some live music, there are some amazing live performances and concerts happening. As has become a New York tradition, Phish will be returning to Madison Square Garden for a four-night run culminating with their mega concert on New Year’s Eve. This will be the 13th New Year’s performance for the band at MSG. Over the past 25 years, the band has played the Garden more than any other venue, with “Phishheads” making the pilgrimage to NYC for their favorite annual tradition: ringing in the New Year with 20,000 of their closest friends!
3. Give your regards to Broadway
Looking for a little more intimate of a performance space, Feinstein’s/54 Below is the place to be! Known as ‘Broadway’s Living Room”, the former secret VIP basement of Studio 54, brings a supper club experience to the Great White Way with performances by Broadway Stars and wonderful dining and cocktails. New Year’s brings a performance from the always dazzling, Tony Award winner, Annaleigh Ashford. In addition to Ms. Ashford’s cabaret performance (which always has a bit of glitz, a bit of rock and roll, and some sing-alongs), there will be a two-course dinner, dessert buffet and a disco dance party to ring in the New Year in Studio54 style!
At Lincoln Center, the New York Philharmonic will honor the work of legendary Stephen Sondheim will be center stage. The evening will be hosted by Mr. Sondheim’s muse, and a legend in her own right, tony award winner Bernadette Peters and featuring Tony award winner Katrina Lenk. The evening will be a celebration of Stephen Sondheim’s music from such shows as Into the Woods, Company, Sweeny Todd and many more — there might even be some special guests. A perfect night for a true Broadway aficionado.
4. Get your Puccini on
Things are even grander at The Metropolitan Opera, also at Lincoln Center. To celebrate the New Year, iconic soprano Anna Netrebko will star in a black-tie gala performance that celebrates Puccini with performances of La Boheme, Tosca and Turandot. Following the performance will be dinner and dancing on the Grand Tier as well as views of the Central Park Fireworks from the terrace.
5. Party All Night
Perhaps, a “standard” performance is not your speed. If you’re looking for something a bit more avant-garde and interactive, welcome in the New Year at the McKittrick World’s Fair at the eclectic McKittrick Hotel, home to the popular interactive theatre piece, Sleep No More. This night of costumed revelry might turn into something from your wildest dreams. There will be show-stopping live performances, aerialists, scenic installations, special surprise guests and more, and the open-bar dance party will go till the wee hours of the morning. For even more opulence, you can start the evening with either a decadent three-course supper, with even more special live entertainment, or follow that with a showing of the notorious Sleep No More for a masked journey through the unknown, all before you visit the World’s Fair. Costumes, as expected, will be lavish and must be kept to the theme of “chic shades of midnight blue, gold, silver, and black, or with a thematic flair inspired by cosmic wonders and explorers of the world.”
As we ring a new decade, as always, New York is full of options for any taste or speed. Let the world be your oyster in saying goodbye to 2019 and welcoming in 2020!