Here’s some refreshing news. November’s jobs report was far better than economists predicted, with the economy adding a robust 321,000 jobs and cementing 2014 as the strongest year for job growth in more than a decade. It seems that the economy is finally beginning to recover from the recession at the pace the country was waiting for. All this is reason enough—as if you needed it—to go out and splurge a bit as you celebrate the new year. As always, Milwaukee offers a variety of New Year’s Eve options at all price points for families, music lovers and club-goers alike, and once again we’ve rounded up many of the highlights for you.
Family Friendly
Skating and S’mores @ Red Arrow Park, 10 a.m.-1 a.m.
For years Milwaukeeans gathered around Red Arrow Park each New Year’s Eve to watch a grand fireworks display. The city stopped hosting those fireworks years ago, but residents continue to congregate around Downtown’s most popular skating rink each Dec. 31. The park will host extended skating hours and offer campfires and s’mores kits with chocolate, graham crackers, marshmallows, a roasting stick and wet wipes. Ten dollars will buy you enough sweet fixings for a family of four.
Harlem Globetrotters @ BMO Harris Bradley Center, 1 and 6 p.m.
Contrary to popular belief, the Harlem Globetrotters do occasionally lose games. The last time they lost was in 2006, however, so chances are good they’ll add a couple more Ws to their tally when they return to the BMO Harris Bradley Center for their annual New Year’s Eve appearance. For decades parents have tuckered out their kids at these family-friendly exhibition games before dropping them off at grandma’s for the night and hitting the town.
Milwaukee Wave vs. Missouri Comets @ UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, 3 p.m.
While the Harlem Globetrotters sink trick shots and make a mockery of easily distracted referees, a few blocks away, the Milwaukee Wave indoor soccer team will play a more orderly match against the Missouri Comets. The first 2,000 fans will take home a Marcel Feenstra bobblehead.
New Year’s Eve Family Celebration @ Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory, 6-9 p.m.
The Mitchell Park Domes caters to smaller children with its annual New Year’s Eve Family Celebration, which this year will feature acoustic Celtic music from the Garlic Mustard Pickers, a magician, face painters, children’s crafts, a balloon drop and party favors.
New Year’s Eve at Noon @ Betty Brinn Children’s Museum, 9 a.m.
The anticipated ball drop comes extra early at Betty Brinn’s annual New Year’s Eve at Noon party. Kids can create their own confetti launchers before ringing in the final afternoon of 2014 with a juice toast.
Live Performances
Trampled By Turtles w/ Har Mar Superstar and Fever Dream @ The Riverside Theater, 7 p.m.
After sitting out a couple of New Year’s Eves, the Riverside Theater hosted the Minnesota bluegrass band Trampled By Turtles last Dec. 31. The band must have enjoyed themselves, because they’re back again this New Year’s Eve. The group’s latest album, Wild Animals, is their most accessible yet, tempering the rapid tempos of their early recordings without sacrificing the showmanship that’s made their music such a draw. This is bluegrass that even non-bluegrass fans can get behind. The band shares this return show with a very different Minnesotan artist: Har Mar Superstar, a tongue-in-cheek R&B singer known for his physical live shows. The night will also feature a balloon drop and midnight countdown. VIP open-bar packages are available.
Jim Gaffigan @ The Pabst Theater, 9 p.m.
Milwaukee loves Jim Gaffigan. For eight years running, the city has turned out to see the affable comedian riff on Hot Pockets, bacon, tacos and other forms of saturated fat at his annual New Year’s Eve shows at the Pabst Theater. Gaffigan kept the food jokes coming in his latest book, this year’s essay collection Food: A Love Story. Longtime fans will not be surprised to learn that he does not enjoy vegetables.
Harvey Scales and the Seven Sounds @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
Best known for writing Johnnie Taylor’s 1976 hit “Disco Lady,” local legend Harvey Scales has been a fixture of the Milwaukee soul scene since the 1960s. For decades, he opened for every major soul and R&B act that came through Milwaukee, and he continues to deliver sweaty, horn-packed live shows with his longtime band the Seven Sounds.
New Year’s Eve @ ComedySportz, 8 and 10:30 p.m.
Milwaukee’s competitive improv troupe ComedySportz hosts two shows on New Year’s Eve. The $35 ticket includes a host of extras, including all-you-can-drink soda and champagne, pre-show hors d’oeuvres and a goodie bag filled with toys and knick-knacks. The 8 p.m. show will feature a fake midnight countdown; the 10:30 p.m. show will include a real one.
John Schneider Orchestra @ O’Donoghue’s Irish Pub, 9 p.m.
Each year the John Schneider Orchestra celebrates the future by revisiting songs from America’s past. Emphasizing swing songs and ballads from the early 20th century American songbook, the cabaret group will perform standards by greats like Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen and George and Ira Gershwin, with a little bit of humor and tap dancing thrown in for good measure. The $20 cover includes a complimentary buffet, party favors and a midnight champagne toast.
Bella Cain @ Horny Goat Hideaway, 9 p.m.
Co-fronted by singer/guitarist Brecken Miles and singer/violinist Jackie Bucher, Bella Cain’s interpretation of country music is a decidedly modern one, influenced by commercial acts like Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Miranda Lambert and Luke Bryan—all of whom Bella Cain have shared shows with. The Wisconsin group will spend New Year’s Eve at the Horny Goat Hideaway. Tickets are $65 and include all-you-can-drink until 1 a.m., a 12:30 a.m. buffet, a midnight champagne toast and a balloon drop advertised as the largest in the city.
Cream City Cabaret Burlesque Show @ Riverwest Public House, 10 p.m.
The newest addition to Milwaukee’s ever-growing burlesque scene, Cream City Cabaret brings a decidedly modern approach to burlesque, welcoming dancers, entertainers, drag queens and drag kings of all shapes, sizes and backgrounds. They’ll perform a free show at one of their preferred stomping grounds, the Riverwest Public House, followed by DJ sets from Armahn The Hammer, Joey Turbo and Hollywood Hewz at 1 a.m., and a service industry breakfast at 4 a.m.
Dancing and Destinations
Stellar Spark 12 @ The Rave, 8 p.m.
Every New Year’s Eve Stellar Spark hosts the largest dance blowout in the state at the Rave, hosting dozens of DJs and producers cribbed from all corners of the dance, EDM and dubstep scenes. This year’s lineup is headlined by trap producer Carnage, who scored a club hit this summer with his Migos collaboration “Bricks.” He’ll be supported by Brillz, Sound Remedy, DJ Funk, Hitmen, DJ Casey Lee, Tista and Kedzie, to name just a few.
The Get Down @ Turner Hall Ballroom, 9 p.m.
The local soul and funk enthusiasts in The Get Down play their biggest event of the year each New Year’s Eve, spinning rare grooves from the ’60s and ’70s for a dancing crowd of hundreds. A $60 ticket to this year’s spin includes an open bar until 1 a.m., a champagne toast, midnight pizza buffet and party favors.
NYE @ LUCID Hookah and Light Lounge, 9 p.m.
This year the SURG restaurant group threw its hat into the nightlife ring, opening the LUCID Hookah and Light Lounge at 729 N. Milwaukee St., in the heart of the Milwaukee Street nightlife scene. True to its name, the venue will celebrate its first New Year’s Eve with—what else?—hookahs and lights, hosting a digital light display and live video mixing from DJ Devast8, along with late-night pizza from Pizza Shuttle and the requisite champagne toast. General admission packages start at $85 a person and include a wide variety of unlimited drinks.
New Year’s Eve 2015 @ Oak, 7 p.m.
The Chicago identical twin DJ duo Milk N Cookies will headline Oak’s New Year’s Eve blowout, supported on the bill by DJs Chris V and Randy Esquire. The promoters are promising a “concert-quality” light and video display, a big balloon drop, party favors and a midnight champagne toast. VIP bottle service is available.
The 8NYE 2015 @ The Eight, 8 p.m.
For its New Year’s Eve blowout, The Eight nightclub (formerly 618 Live) has assembled a lineup of many of the city’s biggest hip-hop DJs, including DJ O, DJ Nustylez, DJ Breezy and DJ Poizon Ivy, along with DJ Dimepiece of the VH1 program “Master of the Mix.” Ticket packages start at $20 for women and $30 for guys and include a midnight balloon drop and champagne toast.
Studio 54 Party @ The Alchemist Theatre, 9:30 p.m.
Bay View’s Alchemist Theatre has transformed its lounge into a club modeled after New York’s famed disco Studio 54 for its upcoming 2015 productions, and it’s making the most of the redesign for this New Year’s Eve party, promising a night of disco music, lights, lasers and cage dancing. Tickets are $40 at the door or $30 online, and include all-you-care-to-drink beer and highballs until 11:30 p.m., and a champagne toast at midnight.
Dead Man’s Carnival @ The Wherehouse, 9 p.m.
For those who like a little spectacle mixed in with their dancing and revelry, the local cabaret troupe Dead Man’s Carnival will take over multiple rooms of the Wherehouse for the venue’s New Year’s Eve gala, entertaining the crowd with their usual variety of burlesque, acrobatics, comedy and clowning. The troupe’s house band Sir Pinkerton and the Magnificents will supply the music, while a fortune teller will let guests know what they can expect in the coming year. The crystal ball also says there will be a champagne toast at midnight.
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New Year’s Eve 2015 @ Apartment 720, 9 p.m.
The Milwaukee Street mainstay Apartment 720 will celebrate New Year’s Eve the same way it always does: with dance music. DJs Four7 and Ginger Kid will anchor the bill, along with an unspecified guest DJ. Tickets are $25 and bottle service and table reservations are available.
Food, Music and Gambling @ Potawatomi Bingo Casino, 8 p.m.
In addition to special menu items at its restaurants and buffet, the Potawatomi Hotel & Casino will offer a variety of entertainment throughout the night, including party music from DJs Goose and Brian S. Redd, dueling pianos with Red Oliver, a Frank Sinatra tribute from Ed Franks and danceable rock and R&B music from the Eddie Butts Band. The casino’s Northern Lights Theater, meanwhile, will host the BoDeans at 10 p.m.
New Year’s Eve Dance Party @ Mad Planet, 9 p.m.
Mad Planet doesn’t mess with a winning formula for its New Year’s Eve parties. Instead it more or less hosts an extended installment of its popular Friday night retro dance parties, with a few modern hits and a champagne toast and complimentary food thrown in. At $15, it’s a budget-friendly alternative to expensive Downtown dance clubs.
Energy 106.9 radio personality Cousin Ed will host Mi-key’s New Year’s Eve celebration, which will feature party music from Miami’s DJ Ekin and DJ Bone White. A $55 package includes all you can drink until 1 a.m., as well as a champagne toast.
