Plans for New Year’s Strip fireworks, downtown party unveiled

Details of the New Year’s Eve celebration on the Las Vegas Strip and downtown were announced Wednesday, with event organizers revealing the theme for America’s Party as “The Big 20.”

It’s a nod to the extravaganza’s 20th anniversary and will feature a soundtrack of popular hits over the past two decades — from Britney Spears to U2 — as fireworks shoot off from seven Strip resorts over eight minutes.

The grand finale is expected to be accompanied by Pink’s “Raise Your Glass,” organizers said. The soundtrack of the performance can be heard live on local radio stations KOMP 92.3 and 97.1 The Point.

America’s Party 2020 is produced by Fireworks by Grucci, in association with Las Vegas Events and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Preparation for the show began a year ago, and installation of the fireworks required 60 pyrotechnicians working more than 3,000 man hours.

More than 80,000 fireworks are planned to ignite in the night sky, with 10,000-plus electrical circuits programmed to launch the pyrotechnics with speed and precision from the MGM Grand, Aria, Planet Hollywood, Caesars Palace, Treasure Island, The Venetian and The STRAT.

The STRAT will serve as the event’s opening act, with “dramatic pyrotechnics” erupting from the tower as the clock counts down to midnight, according to organizers.

“Las Vegas takes every experience to a new level, and New Year’s Eve is no exception,” H. Fletch Brunelle, vice president of marketing for the LVCVA, said in a statement.

The city is expected to draw 333,000 visitors for New Year’s Eve celebrations, creating a $240 million direct economic impact, according to the LVCVA.

America’s Party 2020 is also not limited to the countdown and midnight festivities. Organizers said there will be four stages of live entertainment and more beginning at the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas. The new $32 million overhead Viva Vision screen also will be officially unveiled as the largest single digital display in the world.

The Viva Vision show concept, “MIXology,” will also premiere on New Year’s Eve, “inspired by synesthesia, a perceptual phenomenon where music, art and emotion collide to create an immersive, multi-sensory experience on a grand scale,” according to organizers.

Tickets for America’s Party Downtown are on sale now beginning at $35.

Contact Shea Johnson at sjohnson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0272. Follow @Shea_LVRJ on Twitter.