Artists and musicians started “First Night” to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Boston in December of 1975, and in the 21st century, Port Townsend was finally …
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Artists and musicians started “First Night” to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Boston in December of 1975, and in the 21st century, Port Townsend was finally treated to “First Night” festivities, with the Jefferson County Historical Society conducting the all-ages occasion for more than a decade, after which The Production Alliance incorporated it into its season of events in 2021.
According to Danny Milholland, director of operations for The Production Alliance, the original “First Night” in Boston sought to de-emphasize alcohol, in favor of focusing on live, interactive and multicultural performances instead, but what excites him most about the extravaganza is that it represents an opportunity to combine longstanding and beloved local traditions with untested new activities.
“Every year, we do the Lantern Parade, which is at 7 p.m. on Madison Street this year,” Milholland said. “Every year, we do the First Night Circus, which is at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. at the American Legion Hall this year. But this year, we’re also adding an actual fire pit to Madison Street, to see how that affects the feel and the aesthetic of the proceedings. We’re also consolidating a majority of our revels to Madison Street, to concentrate that community energy.”
Although Madison Street, between Water and Washington streets, will host a dense enough collection of “First Night” events to require closing it to vehicle traffic from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., there will still be enough festivities to fill not only the American Legion Hall on 209 Monroe St., but also the Jefferson County Museum of Art and History on 540 Water St., and the Key City Public Theatre on 419 Washington St., from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023.
Milholland appreciates seeing all sorts of disparate activities brought together under the umbrella of “First Night,” to the point that he even touts the diversity of the occasion’s local food vendors, including High Country Doughnuts, Java Gypsy, Vegetari, Rufina Garay’s Food Love and what he described as the “highly anticipated Cape Cleare Salmon Cart.”
