Home » Inaugural Lou Year’s Eve celebration coming to downtown Louisville

Inaugural Lou Year’s Eve celebration coming to downtown Louisville

Family-friendly event will feature 40 performances; more than 15 venues along West Main Streetlye-masthead4

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Dec. 6, 2016) – West Main Street in downtown Louisville will come alive with 40 performances and activities at 15 different venues and museums on Saturday, Dec. 31 from 2 p.m.-midnight during the inaugural Lou Year’s Eve celebration.

Activities will take place inside and outside on West Main Street, which will be closed to traffic between 4th and 9th Streets. The new event will showcase the city’s vibrant arts and cultural scene while providing a fun and safe New Year’s Eve option for the whole family. Click here to view the schedule of events, and watch for new events to be added throughout the month.

Programming highlights include a concert by Louisville native and The Voice contestant “Dave Moisan,” performances by the Louisville Ballet and Actors Theatre of Louisville, and a series of interactive art pieces created by local artist and muralist Braylyn Resko Stewart along with event attendees.

Children’s activities will be held during the afternoon hours from 2 p.m.-5 p.m. in five museums between Seventh and Ninth Streets, including a scavenger hunt, hands-on art projects, caricatures, face painting, magicians, puppet shows, balloon makers, storytelling, and more. At 5 p.m., the Louisville Lions Dance Team will lead a People’s Procession made up of everyone who wants to join in marching down West Main Street from Ninth Street to Fifth Street, ending at the Main Stage.

The Main Stage will be built on West Main Street in front of the Kentucky Center for the Arts and will rev up at 6 p.m. with a concert by country-rock-blues band Wildwood, followed by DJ Glenn Smith, and later a concert by “bourbon jazz” band Billy Goat Strut Revue. An adult beverage garden will open at 6 p.m., and other evening activities include improv shows, performance by Small Time Napoleon and Kentucky Shakespeare, poetry readings, and more. The finale of the event will include a countdown to midnight with fun surprises, and the raising of Kentucky’s largest disco ball by crane.

Local food trucks will participate and several restaurants will offer specials for event attendees. Tickets are available online for $8 in advance/$10 at the door for adults, $5 for children ages 6-12, and free admission for children 5 and under. A very limited number of VIP tickets are available for $175, and includes entrance to SCENE, the new restaurant in the Kentucky Center for the Arts which overlooks the Main Street activities, and will offer a cash bar and complimentary hors d’oeuvres prepared by Bristol Catering.

Sponsors of the 2016 Lou Year’s Eve include Old 502 Winery, Deco Paper Products, Hilliard Lyons, Commonwealth Bank & Trust, The Gheens Foundation, Axxis, Inc., Goodwood Brewing, Highland Cleaners, Tilford, Dobbins & Schmidt, PLLC, the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau, and Doe-Anderson, Inc.

For a detailed list of performers, the event schedule, and to purchase tickets in advance, please visit www.louyearseve.com. Follow @louyearseve on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.