New Year's Eve revelers will have plenty of options for live music across the Triangle tonight.
In true out-with-the-old sprit, The Casbah in Durham will host live jazz music. It's the last music show there, before the venue becomes a game room.
The Carolina Symphony begins early in the evening at the Meymandi Concert Hall. For less formal listening, Southern Culture on the Skids will play absurdist Rockabilly tunes at the Southland Ballroom in Raleigh.
The family-friendly arts festival, , will have a number of artists from around the world. Program Director Terri Dollar says one of the musical highlights with be the "World of Drumming" performances.
鈥淭his is gonna feature all kinds of rhythm from around the world, everything from steel drums to Native American drums, to African drums,鈥� Dollar says. 鈥淎nd so all night long folks can enjoy great rhythm movement, and that, I think that will be very popular with people.鈥�
For a break from the music, First Night Raleigh also promises comedians and an improv group who will perform games and skits based on travel themes suggestions from the audience.
Although there are plenty of places to pop the cork at midnight, several communities are hosting kid-friendly events that still allow for an early bedtime.
Marbles Kids' Museum in Raleigh will ring in 2014 at noon with bubble wrap "fireworks" and a ball drop.
Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill will host a starlit New Year's celebration under the dome.
First Night Raleigh has an afternoon children's celebration, and families can march in the annual People's Procession and climb around in the Paperhand Puppet Intervention's art installation. Dollar says kids can count down to the New Year there, too.
鈥淲e do a countdown at 7:00 and we pretend it's midnight,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e drop the acorn, we do fireworks and everything. And it used to be called the 'kids' drop' but actually there's tons of adults and people without children who just wanna celebrate the New Year and then they go back home and do their party.鈥�
Mount Olive Pickle will drop its three-foot pickle into a tank at 7 p.m., too. Organizers say that's when the clock officially strikes midnight in Greenwich Mean Time.
