NJ New Years Eve & First Night Guide

John Stringfellow | z * | August 1, 2009

Today, December 17, 2011, we’re updating our NJ New Years Eve & First Night Guide. Many of the events have not changed since last year, so I’ve just left that information alone. I did find some more events in Mercer County and have added those to the list this year. In searching for more commnunity events and First Night celebrations at the Jersey Shore and South Jersey I didn’t find much. I checked out Atlantic City, Cape May, Long Beach Island and Red Bank and came up empty handed. I did find a lot of restaurants and bars hosting dinners, concerts and private parties. If any of you know of any great event I missed, let me know by leaving us a comment below.

New Year’s Eve Fireworks, Battleship New Jersey, Camden [Camden County . South Jersey]

Bring in the New Year with a Bang! Or just experience the 6:00 pm fireworks display over the Delaware River from the region’s best vantage point — the decks of The Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial. The Battleship will be opening her decks for both the 6:00 pm and Midnight New Year’s Eve fireworks shows for people throughout the Delaware Valley. Further, families can spend the First Night of 2011 aboard the Battleship as part of the ship’s award-winning Overnight … More info here

First Night Haddonfield, Haddonfield [Camden County . South Jersey] ——
First Night® Haddonfield More info here.

First Night, Ocean City [Cape May County . South Jersey]

Ocean City sponsors one of the Jersey Shore’s biggest parties to ring in the New Year. First Night New Years Eve Celebration begins in the afternoon and continues all night long. The festivities include a long list of concerts featuring just about any type of music you might want, including: rock, country, folk, doo wop, Broadway, gospel, big band and barbershop quartet music. That’s not to mention the other entertainment like: jugglers, magicians, story tellers and Irish Dancers. The town also sponsors a 3 course Taste of the Jersey Shore type dinner. It features dishes provided by the Ocean City Restaurant Association. The night is capped off with a fireworks display at midnight to welcome in the new year. More info here.

New Year’s Eve Salute to Vienna, State Theatre, New Brunswick [Middlesex County . Central Jersey]

The State Theatre will celebrate the New Year with a Salute to Vienna that they call the most elegant New Year’s concert in the world. Inspired by Vienna’s world-famous Neujahrskonzert (New Year’s Concert), this holiday tradition brings the same splendor, charm and beauty to the State Theatre once again. A brilliant new cast of over 75 musicians, European singers and dancers inspire and delight with popular Strauss waltzes, polkas and operetta excerpts. Music that goes down like a glass of champagne! Fall in love with the sounds of Vienna’s “Waltz King” in an unforgettable and uplifting New Year’s celebration! More info here.

Hogmanay New Year’s Eve Bonfire, Lawrence Historical Society [Lawrenceville . Mercer County . Central Jersey]

When I first saw this word, I could only think how my friends in South Alabama would react to this word, Hogmanay: “What you mean Hawg Money? Pigs don’t got cash you idjit!” Actually Hogmanay (pronounced [ˌhɔɡməˈneː]) is the Scots word for the last day of the year. It is used in association with the coming of the New Year and the celebrations that surround it. In Edinburgh there’s an incredible Hogmanay fireworks display every year. In New Jersey it’s celebrated with a big bonfire that symbolizes a clean break with all that went wrong in the old year, hot cocoa, cake and a concert at the Brearley House. The celebration starts at 6:00 pm and runs to about 9:00 pm. The 1761 Brearley House is located just off Princeton Pike at 100 Meadow Lane in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. More info here

New Year’s Eve Concert *** Concert Cancelled ***, Greater Trenton Symphony Orchestra, Trenton [Mercer County . Central Jersey]
December 18th, 2011: I just called the Orchestra’s reservation line and got the message that the concert has been cancelled. The Greater Trenton Symphony Orchestra will present their New Year’s Eve Concert at the Patriots Theater, of the Trenton War Memorial on Friday, December 31st at 8:00 pm. The program will include Rhapsody in Blue by Gershwin, Overture to Die Fledermaus by Strauss, selections from Mozart, Operatic selections from La Boheme, La Traviata, Carmen and The Barber of Seville and more. Tickets cost start at $25.00 and premium seats are $65.00 each. The concert is almost always sold out, so get your ticket as soon as possible. More info here.

Morristown [Morris County . North Jersey]

This Morris County celebration of the arts and culture is held every year in Morristown. This year they will celebrate their 20^th anniversary ringing in the New Year throughout downtown Morristown this New Year’s Eve. The celebration, which typically attracts thousands of people from throughout the area, provides one night of unlimited entertainment and two dazzling fireworks shows for one low price. With artistic programming provided by the Arts Council of the Morris Area, First Night Morris County features nearly 80 performances ranging from jazz, world music and rock to theatre, dance and comedy. The celebration begins at 7 p.m. on December 31, and ends with fireworks at midnight. Fireworks also are scheduled at 9:15 p.m. More info here.

Maplewood-South Orange [Essex County . North Jersey]

Maplewood-South Orange celebrates New Year’s Eve with a family friendly First Night event that features puppets, crafts, live music, magic and more. This year the community celebration is observing its 20th anniversary.More info here.

Montclair [Essex County . North Jersey] —— Montclair First Night More info here.