West Coasters and the PST? No big whoop. Yep, we're three hours "behind" the powerful centers of industry, government, entertainment, and media, but our own Pacific-snug cities can lay claim to being pretty big-wig-y, too.
Meaning time zone envy isn't our thing, though New Year's Eve can test that, given that the Times Square madness happens at 9 p.m. 'round these parts, when our parties are just warming up.
Grand Park, and a new New Year's Eve bash, hopes to bring the heat to 9 p.m. as well as the more traditional time of midnight. The City Hall-close green space is not only set to host "a grand-scale, multi-dimensional celebration event" on Dec. 31, but it is going to stage not one but two countdowns.
The first will coincide with the ball drop in New York City, meaning that Angelenos will "5, 4, 3, 2, 1"-it at 9 p.m. local time. The upshot? Families with smaller tots can enjoy some countdown action.
And the second countdown? It'll fall at the oh-so-classic time of midnight.
But countdowns are brief and New Year's Eve is long, meaning there shall be other diversions, like music and dance performances. Also, several artists will stage installations around the park, including two-dimensional projections on City Hall and "three-dimensional images on the hour."
Cool. Also cool: A digital mapping project which is set to astound people wearing pointy paper hats and confetti. The upshot? When you're not reflecting on the year that has passed and the one to come, you shall be culturally enriched.
The Scene
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N.Y.E. at LA is, yes, on New Year's Eve at Grand Park. Time's 6 p.m. and the cost? Free.
