Get eve’n with 2005 with some New Year’s Eve festivities.
Get off the couch, bundle up and head out on the town for New Year’s Eve. With plenty happening in the area, there’s no excuse for staying home – again – to watch the ball drop on TV.
Bars will be hopping, restaurants will be serving up fine cuisine with champagne toasts, and hotels will have special overnight packages.
Head a little farther afield and there will be community celebrations that range from the day-long New Year’s Portland event with happenings galore for the kids to New Year’s Bethel, which boasts a community marshmallow roasting, horse-drawn wagon rides and contra dancing.
And of course there will be fireworks. Plenty of them. They’ll be indoors at a discounted Portland Pirates game, or outdoors in Bethel. Or head to Sunday River resort in Newry for displays at two different hotels.
Looking for something a little more offbeat? As of Thursday there were still tickets for comedian Bob Marley’s New Year’s Eve show at Portland’s Merrill Auditorium.
And for those with a greater sense of adventure, give Ed Knightly a call and hop the bus to the New Year’s Eve Super Bingo extravaganza at Penobscot High Stakes Bingo in Old Town. Elvis will be there. Need we say more?
OK, we will. Here are just a few of the things going on around here this New Year’s Eve. And don’t forget to check in with your favorite nightspot for more possibilities.
Community Events
New Year’s Bethel
When: 6:30 p.m. to midnight, ending with a fireworks display and a ringing in of the new year.
Highlights: The inflatable Fred Garbo will be performing, along with humorist Joe Perham and a host of musicians. One of the biggest draws of the celebration is the contra dance, which will kick off at 8:15 p.m.
Cost: Some events are free. Admission to all the night’s performances is $10 in advance for adults, $8 for ages 6-18, and free for those 5 and under. Advance ticket sales end at 4 p.m. Saturday, then tickets cost $12 and $10 for adults and children.
Where: Various locations in town
The lowdown: Sure to be a charmer, with a community marshmallow roast and horse-drawn wagon rides (both free).
“I find it interesting – a lot of people never roasted marshmallows,” says Stan Howe of the Bethel Historical Society, which puts on the New Year’s celebration annually. Howe himself cuts the roasting sticks and the historical society provides the marshmallows.
FMI: Call the Bethel Historical Society at 824-2908 or visit www.bethelmaine.com
New Year’s Harrison
When: 8 to 11:30 p.m. Bicentennial Gala Ball at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post, Route 35. Costumes optional
Where: Ronald St. John Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall, Route 35.
Cost: $25 per person. Tickets at Harrison Town Office.
Highlights: The New Year’s lighted ball on the village green will be dropped at midnight and “Auld Lang Syne” sung.
New Year’s Portland
When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., followed by a discounted Portland Pirates Game at 5:30 p.m.
Highlights: There are more than 50 free events, including performances by Rick Charette and The Bubble Gum Band, magicians, balloon twisters, face painters and a hypnotist.
Cost: Free, with free parking in the Elm Street Parking Garage and on city streets
Where: Various locations throughout the city
The lowdown: Very kid-oriented – so much so that it takes place during the day. But there’s lots to do. Check out the ice carvings in the Portland Public Market plaza, or help create art in Monument square. There’s also the Teen Idol Contest at the Portland High School. “You’d be amazed at the range of talent out there,” says Liz Darling, marketing and communications manager for the city.
There wasn’t enough money for a city fireworks display this year, but Darling said there will be an indoor show at a Portland Pirates hockey game following the day’s festivities.
FMI: visit www.newyearsportland.com
Wining and Dining
Reservations are going fast, but a number of area restaurants, bars and hotels still have limited openings for those interested in joining the New Year’s Eve festivities. Among them:
• Backlash, Dirty McCurdy and D.J. Bernard all will be taking separate stages at the Midnight Blues Club, intersection of Court and Main streets, Auburn. The party begins at 7 p.m. and is expected to last until 2 a.m. Jan. 1.
Tickets, available at the bar, are $15 in advance, $20 at the door, and include party favors and a champagne toast.
Dinner specials, including prime rib and stuffed chicken breast, will be offered for $40 per couple, with a glass of champagne and dessert.
FMI: Call the club at 783-9600
• Tickets must be purchased in advance for the celebration at Mixers, 136 Sabattus Road, Sabattus. They will be available through Saturday at a cost of $25 per person. The price includes an eclectic night of music and dancing, featuring everything from country songs to hip hop. “On New Year’s Eve, I kind of like to mix it all up,” says bar owner Randall Greenwood.
Party favors, a midnight champagne toast and a buffet are included, along with commemorative T-shirts. The party is expected to run from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.
FMI: Call Mixers at 375-4188
• A bit more formal, Rolandeau’s, at 775 Washington St., Auburn, still had late tables available for a New Year’s Eve feast. Complete dinners will be priced from $22 to $28, including a drink, appetizer and dessert. Sauted lobster, roast duck with raspberry sauce and roast filet mignon with bernaise sauce are some of the menu highlights.
FMI: To make a reservation, call the restaurant at 784-2110
• For those who would really like to relax and unwind, both the Ramada Inn, 490 Pleasant St., Lewiston, and the Hilton Garden Inn Auburn Riverwatch, 14 Great Falls Plaza, Auburn, are offering special packages.
For about $217, a couple can enjoy dinner at Dudleys Dining & Entertainment at the Ramada hotel, then head over to the grand ballroom for dancing and a midnight champagne toast. Afterward, there’s no driving to be done as a room is included.
Revelers also may forgo the overnight stay and dine at Dudleys for $20.06 per person (celebrating 2006, get it?), or dance the night away to Betty Sanborn and Nick Knowlton in the ballroom for $35 per person.
There won’t be any public entertainment at the Hilton, but the $119 New Year’s Eve package includes deluxe overnight accommodations, pool and hot tub, champagne and chocolates and a full breakfast.
There will be a special menu at the restaurant, with entrees ranging from $14.95 to $29.95.
FMI: Call the Ramada Inn at 784-2331; the Hilton at 784-4433.
Concerts, bingo and skiing?
Among some other New Year’s Eve alternatives to consider:
• A performance by Maine humorist Bob Marley at the Merrill Auditorium in Portland. Tickets for the early show at 6:30 p.m. were going fast, but as of Thursday it looked like there would be some seats available for the 9 p.m. show. Comedian George Hamm opening.
Seats are $35 to $38.
FMI: Please call 842-0800 or visit www.porttix.com.
• Get the ink dobber out for New Year’s Eve Super Bingo at Penobscot High Stakes Bingo on Indian Island in Old Town. For $64, Ed Knightly will pick passengers up on a bus route that runs from Oxford through Rumford and Farmington. The price covers a $50 bingo entry fee, and there will be a buffet, party favors and, as mentioned, a performance by Elvis himself.
The bus is scheduled to leave Oxford around noon.
For those who care to make the drive themselves, the doors on Indian Island open at noon and the buffet starts at 4 p.m. Bingo begins at 5 p.m.
“If you’re a bingo player, this is one you don’t want to miss,” says Manager Miles Francis.
To book a bus ride with Ed, call 539-9956.
FMI: Call Penobscot High Stakes at 800-255-1293, or visit www.penobscotbingo.com
• Like to get some exercise before celebrating? Hit Shawnee Peak in Bridgton, where night skiing is only $10 between 7 and 10 p.m. on Saturday. Rentals are just $12.
Afterward, those over 21 may want to move to Blizzard’s Pub, where dinner and New Year’s Eve entertainment can be had for $40 per person. (There’s also an entertainment-only option after 8:30 p.m. for $15 per person.)
The Bruce Marshall Band will be playing. The dinner buffet starts at 6:30 p.m. and includes appetizers, entrees, sides and dessert.
Reservations are requested for tables of six or more.
FMI: Call 647-8444, ext. 29 or e-mail blizzards@shawneepeak.com.
• A little more low-key will be the celebration at Sunday River ski resort, where there will be children’s games at the Grand Summit Resort Hotel and the Jordan Grand Resort Hotel, and fireworks at night.
FMI: Call the resort at 800-543-2SKI or visit www.sundayriver.com
• Live at The Widowmaker will be The Cusaks at Sugarloaf USA ski area in Carrabassett Valley. Classic rock anthems of the 70s, topped with party hits of the 80s and 90s. The cost is $15 per person or $20 per couple. There will be all the New Year’s party favors to celebrate in style. Show starts at 9:30 p.m.
Steve Vellani & Roger Samson Band will play at the Shipyard Brew Haus
FMI: http://www.sugarloaf.com/events.html
• The Tom Ball Band will play from 4 to 8 p.m. at Saddleback ski area in Rangeley.
FMI: http://www.saddlebackmaine.com/events.asp
Still determined to stay home?
Then get on the computer and download San Diego Screen Saver’s 3D New Year’s Countdown software for $9.95 (www.sandiegoscreensavers.com). Watch the animated screen saver from a comfy spot as it counts down to the new year and then unleashes confetti and an “orchestral rendition of Auld Lang Syne'” when the midnight hour strikes.
Regardless of what you do, happy new year!
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