Animal of the Hour

2:00-8:00 at the top of every hour

North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences

Third Floor - Windows on the World - Site 6

Ballroom Dancing

7:30-11:00

Sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina

Media Sponsor:  Raleigh Downtowner

Sir Walter Apartments Ballroom - Site 23

Ring in 2009 while dancing the night away with the USA Dancers.  Instruction in ballroom, swing, Latin and country western dance and contests on-going throughout the night.

Blake Peebles - Guitar Hero Challenge

7:30 - 10:00

Sponsored by First Citizens Bank

North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Auditorium - Site 4 (CAP 275)

Test your skills against this local champion. Blake Peebles has been racking up awards for his amazing talent at the popular Guitar Hero video game. The sixteen-year old is one of eight finalists in the national competition for Guitar Hero III. Peebles has been asked to appear on several TV shows, including Dr. Phil, Ellen, Wife Swap, Fox & Friends and the CBS Early Show.

www.blakepeebles.com

Carolina Grace Gospel Choir

7:00, 8:00, 9:00

with special opening guests The M'n'M Singers

6:00

Media Sponsor:  The Connection Place Magazine

First Baptist Church Sanctuary, Wilmington Street - Site 18 (CAP 425)

Carolina Grace is a Southern Gospel trio that was formed in May of 1999. The group has spent most of their existence as a quartet but became a trio at the beginning of 2007. The current members of Carolina Grace are pianist Carol Hardee, lead singer Jim Harry, tenor Terry Ragland, and baritone singer Odell Yates. Jim Harry currently serves as Chaplain of the NC House of Representatives.

www.carolinagrace.com

Christine Lavin

8:00 and 10:00

with special opening guest Eli Snuggs

7:30 and 9:30

Sponsored by Golden Corral

Media Sponsor:  Fairway Outdoor Advertising

Church of the Good Shepherd Sanctuary - Site 12 (CAP 425)

Christine Lavin is a New York City-based singer, songwriter, and promoter of contemporary folk music. She has recorded numerous solo albums, and has also recorded with other female folk artists under the name Four Bitchin' Babes. Lavin has also put together several compilation albums of contemporary folk artists, including On a Winter's Night.  She is known for her sense of humor, which is expressed in both her music and her onstage performances. Many of her songs alternate between emotional reflections on romance and outright comedy. Two of her more famous songs include "Sensitive New Age Guys" and "Bald Headed Men".

www.christinelavin.com

Eli Snuggs is a 19-year-old singer-songwriter based in Raleigh.  In addition to singing and penning songs, Snuggs is a guitarist and harmonica player whose musical influences include Bob Dylan, Neil Young, John Mayer, Joni Mitchell and Eric Clapton, among others.

www.myspace.com/elisnuggs

Chuck Davis and the African American Dance Ensemble

7:30, 8:30, 10:00

Sponsored by Bank of America

Media Sponsor:  The Triangle Tribune Newspaper

First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall - Site 14 (CAP 325)

Celebrate community spirit to the beat of ancient rhythms. The choreographic works of the Dance Ensemble depict customs, traditions and occasions of African life. For over a decade, Chuck Davis has taken annual trips to Africa to study African dance and art traditions. “In the village, we humble ourselves as we dance and sing for the elders’ approval which is never readily given. Our knees touch our shoulders as we jump, spin and create new moves from ancient sources trapped in the belly of the drum emitting rhythm after rhythm. And we dance. What I learn I return to the States and share.” – Chuck Davis
www.africanamericandanceensemble.org

Claire Lynch

7:00, 8:00, 9:00, 10:00

Co-Presented by PineCone, The Piedmont Council of Traditional Music

Sponsored by Tharrington Smith, LLP

Media Sponsor:  Carolina Woman

First Presbyterian Church Sanctuary - Site 13 (CAP 500)

Claire Lynch is an American bluegrass singer, songwriter, and session vocalist who joined her first band, then called Hickory Wind, in 1973. After changing its name to the Front Porch String Band, the group worked regularly throughout the Southeastover the next several years, becoming fan favorites on the strength of its open-minded musical approach and lead singer. 

In addition to her two Grammy nominations, Lynch has had extended stays in the top reaches of the Gavin Americana and Bluegrass Unlimited charts, and received an IBMA award for "Female Vocalist of the Year" (1997). Since 2005, Lynch has been touring and recording with "The Claire Lynch Band".  Lynch's 2006 Rounder release, "New Day," was named #2 in Bluegrass Now magazine's Top Ten Albums of the Year chart. In 2007, Lynch was nominated IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year.

www.clairelynch.com

Dancing on the Plaza

with Kim Armstrong and others

8:00 - 11:00

Lichtin Plaza at the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts - Site 24

Dance your way into the new year under the light of the First Night Lampion Project with leader Kim Armstrong of "A Popular Dance."

ELM Collective

7:45, 8:45, 10:15

Media Sponsor:  The Carolina Times

First Baptist Church Sanctuary, Salisbury Street - Site 11 (CAP 425)

Most jazz bands don’t include an oud, but Raleigh-based band ELM Collective isn’t like most jazz bands. Their multi-layered global sound is a direct reflection of the composition of the band, whose seven members hail from five nations and four continents. 

The "composers' collective" provides a forum for the fusion of jazz and world sounds and is influenced by the personal experiences that each of the musicians bring. The members of the collective are deeply convinced that they are all part of a global world, where art and music are elements that can unify different cultures and create a new vision of peace and coexistence for the generations to come. They take as their mission to show to their audiences that this blending of cultures is indeed not only possible, but of higher intellectual and artistic value. To fulfill this goal, ELM collective is dedicated to the performance of original material created by its members and uniquely arranged to highlight the instrumentation and artistic perspective of the ensemble.  Members include Marco Buongiorno Nardelli, Jim Crew, Naji Hilal, Ed T. Butler, Alex Gorodezky, Ernie Donadelle, and Frake “bakru” Hunsel.

www.elmcollective.org

Ed Stephenson and the Paco Band

7:15 - 10:30

Sponsored by the Seby B. Jones Family

Media Sponsor:  La Conexion

Capital Bank Lobby - Site 21 (CAP 75)

Ed Stephenson and the Paco Band featuring Billy Stewart and Sara Romweber is a high-energy flamenco-jazz trio. The band plays original music as well as compositions by Paco de Lucia, Al Di Meola, Chick Corea, and Ottmar Liebert.  A highly sought after musician in the Raleigh area, Ed Stephenson has played for the North Carolina Symphony, the North Carolina Theater, the North Carolina Bach Festival, and the National Opera Company. In addition to his active performing career, Ed was awarded the North Carolina School of the Arts "Teacher of the Year Award" in 1995 and is currently on the music faculty at Meredith College.

www.edwardstephenson.com

Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater

10:00

Sponsored by CARQUEST Auto Parts

Media Sponsor:  The Independent Weekly

Memorial Auditorium, Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts -

Site 25 (CAP 2200)

*PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE.  PERFORMANCES PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED FOR FLETCHER THEATRE WILL NOW BE HELD IN MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM.

This group continues to astound and tickle audiences with its pop-action inflatables and hilarious stage presence. Fast-paced, energetic, universally engaging and theatrically clever, Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater Company has won the praise and affection of audiences worldwide--seen on The Late Show with David Letterman, at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, on Broadway at the New Victory Theater and on stage and television in Chile, Japan, Ireland and Brazil (just to mention a few).  

Fred Garbo got paid for doing a card trick in 1974, and has been a professional performer ever since. On Sesame Street, he was the acrobat inside Barkley the Dog. On Broadway, he was the chief juggler in the musical Barnum. He toured Europe, Hong Kong and Australia with the Obie Award-winning Foolsfire, with Bob Berky and Michael Moschen.  Whether tumbling for the New York City Opera at Lincoln Center or dancing with MOMIX in Brazil, Fred brings a gymnast's timing and an actor's presence to his Inflatable Theater Co.

www.fredgarbo.com

Jaki Shelton Green, Piedmont Poet Laureate

Join Jaki Shelton Green, North Carolina's Piedmont Poet Laureate, on the Main Stage for a special New Year's Eve blessing prior to the 7:00 Early Countdown. Jaki Shelton Green received the North Carolina Award for Literature in 2003 and the Sam Ragan Award in 2007. Her publications include Dead on Arrival, Dead on Arrival and New Poems, Masks, Conjure Blues, singing a tree into dance, breath of the song, and Blue Opal, a play. Her poetry has appeared in publications such as Solo Press, The Crucible, The African-American Review, Obsidian, Ms. Magazine, Essence Magazine, KAKALAK, Poets for Peace, Emigration, Immigration, and Diversity, Callaloo, and the ringling ear, Black Poets Lean South Anthology published by Cave Canem, and the PEDESTAL Poetry Journal. She lives in Mebane, NC.

John Brown and the Groove Shop Band

6:00 - 7:15

EARLY COUNTDOWN

Sponsored by Squirt

Main Stage - Site 22

John Brown is a Grammy-nominated bassist and the Director of the Jazz Program at Duke University. He has performed all over the world with artists like Elvin Jones, each member of the Marsalis family, Nnenna Freelon, Rosemary Clooney, Nicholas Payton, Mark Whitfield and has performed regularly with the North Carolina Symphony since 1992.

www.jbjazz.com

Lampion Project

Lichtin Plaza, Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts - Site 24

The First Night Raleigh Lampion Project will illuminate Lichtin Plaza with large Chinese-style lanterns colorfully decorated by local art students, community groups and professional artists.  Come check out these unique lanterns, each representing the hope to "Keep the Creativity Light Burning into the New Year."

First Night Raleigh would like to thank the following artists for their participation in this exciting new project:

Lenny Marcus Trio
7:00-8:30 Concert
9:00-11:00 Jazz Jam
Media Sponsor: The Carolinian
Christ Church Parish Hall – Site 16 (CAP 150)
Lenny Marcus (keyboards), Rick Eckberg (bass), and Peter Ingram (drums) deliver a cool mix of mainstream jazz standards and hot new original compositions. Ingram has been a part of the Triangle area jazz scene for many years, including recording three albums with Group Sax. He has worked with jazz greats like Stan Getz, Clark Terry, and Charlie Byrd. Marcus lived for many years in New Orleans and had the opportunity to study under Ellis Marsalis.
www.lennymarcustrio.com

Mark Nizer

6:00, 7:30, 9:00

Sponsored by Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan, LLP

Media Sponsor:  Wake Living Magazine

Memorial Auditorium, Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts -

Site 25 (CAP 2200)

*PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE.  PERFORMANCES PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED FOR FLETCHER THEATRE WILL NOW BE HELD IN MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM.

Mark Nizer is one of the greatest entertainment comedians and jugglers performing today. His wild exploits have landed him on MTV, HBO’s Just for Laughs, Arsenio Hall, Bob Hope and Other Young Comedians, Comic Strip Live and LA Law. He has opened for Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Hope, George Burns, John Byner, Gladys Knight, The Temptations, Johnny Mathis, Ray Charles, and Barry Manilow.

Making the impossible possible and the improbable probable, Mark Nizer has taken his one-man show to a variety of venues around the world, including The Improv, The Comedy Store, Walt Disney World, numerous college campuses, and all major cruise lines. He has also performed in thousands of opera houses, civic centers, festivals and performing arts centers including the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (three times). 

Don’t miss the combination of original comedy, world class juggling, movement, music and technology that promises a spellbinding evening. Whether juggling laser beams at 1000 rpms, or five ping pong balls being thrown 20 feet in the air using only his mouth; or even juggling a burning propane tank, a running electric carving knife and a 16-pound bowling ball, you'll discover for yourself that Mark Nizer is truly "the juggler your mother warned you about." Or if she didn't, she should have.

www.nizer.com

Michael Stanwood

9:00 - 10:00

North Carolina Museum of History Lobby - Site 3

Stanwood is a five-time winner of Westword's Best of Denver for everything from his music recordings to his performances. He has composed scores for dance, theater and film as well as for three critically acclaimed recordings. Stanwood has also toured throughout Southeast Asia as a musical goodwill ambassador for the U.S. Information Service. He now plays a variety of ethnic instruments like the didjeridu, the Thai khaen, and the mbira, as well as the guitar. Runner up in the 2004 International Autoharp Championship, he is considered "one of the finest autoharp players in America today," and he has played that instrument with orchestras, as well as solo and with numerous bands.

www.michaelstanwood.com

The North Carolina Theatre Conservatory's Advanced Teen Class

Presents William Shakespeare's "Macbeth"

7:30, 8:30, 9:45

Sponsored by Lunsford & Strickland, PA

Media Sponsor:  The City Insight

Highway Building Auditorium - Site 17 (CAP 325)

The North Carolina Theatre Conservatory's Acting Company will produce a modern version of Shakespeare's MACBETH. This workshopped piece developed by a collaborative Acting Company draws on modern American politics for it's flavor, and examines the age-old struggle of free-will vs. fatalism. The language stays the same, though cut for understanding and time, but the staging is modern. The production will be staged in full on May 1, 2009.

www.nctheatre.com

Opera Company of North Carolina

8:00 and 10:00

Sponsored by Captive-Aire Systems

Edenton Street United Methodist Church Sanctuary - Site 9 (CAP 1200)

Featuring Opera Company vocalists Stephanie Lowd (soprano) and Monifa Harris (mezzo) and Frank Pittman (accompanist).  For more than 12 years, The Opera Company of North Carolina has presented full-scale opera productions featuring the finest operatic talent. The company continues to receive critical acclaim and has developed a diverse and enthusiastic audience base. The Opera Company understands that a strong and vibrant arts community is essential to the continued growth of the Triangle region, and embraces the role they play in enriching the lives, hearts and minds of its citizens. Located in offices along the changing landscape of Fayetteville Street, The Opera Company of North Carolina is energized by the rebirth of the capital city, and committed to being a major contributor to Raleigh’s cultural renaissance.

Resolution Oak Tree

7:00 - 11:00

200 Block of Fayetteville Street - Site 20

Got a resolution for 2009?  Write it on a "leaf" and addit to the First Night Raleigh Resolution Oak Tree, created by local sculptor Jennifer Van Orden.

The Smithereens

10:30 - 12:00

COUNTDOWN TO MIDNIGHT

Main Stage - Site 22

Dressed in leather, brandishing heavy guitars and an unabashed fetish for British Invasion pop, the Smithereens were an anomaly in the American college rock scene of the late '80s. Lead singer/songwriter Pat DiNizio stood out not only with his strange beatnik goatee, but also because his catchy hooks were haunting, not punchy, and because his lyrics were morose. As time wore on, the group became more straightforward, turning into an excellent concert band, one that attacked pop songs with the weight of AC/DC.

Placing an advertisement in a New York paper for musicians influenced by Holly, Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, and the Clash, DiNizio eventually came into contact with New Jersey high school students Dennis Diken (drums), Jim Babjak (guitar) and Mike Mesaros (bass), who had all played together in school.

In 1986, the band released their debut album, the Don Dixon-produced, “Especially for You”, to positive reviews. “Green Thoughts” appeared early in 1988, and the first single, "Only A Memory," not only became a college and modern rock hit, but it crossed over to album-rock stations as well.

The Smithereens made their attempt for big-time album-rock success with their third album, “11.” Hiring producer Ed Stasium brought a heavier guitar sound, which made "A Girl Like You" -- a song rejected as the theme for the comedy, “Say Anything” -- a Top 40 hit, sending 11 to gold status. They moved to RCA for 1994's “A Date With the Smithereens”, their first album since Green Thoughts to be produced by Don Dixon.

The group retains a sizable cult following which helps them tour successfully through today, with all original members. The band has also released a pair of compilations; the hits package “Blown to Smithereens” and the rarities collection “Attack of the Smithereens.”

www.officialsmithereens.com

Southern String Band

7:30 - 9:30

Sponsored by Julia and Frank Daniels, Jr.

Media Sponsor:  ParkGeek.com

Raleigh City Museum - Site 19

The Southern String Band is a group of nine friends in Raleigh, who play old time string band music for fun in whatever combination show up for the weekly session, usually on Thursday nights. The group also does an occasional public event, playing background music at informal receptions, picnics, and so forth. They are not polished entertainers, but sound pretty good when they get in the groove.

www.southernstringband.net

Spoken Word:  Poems and Other Orations

7:30 - 9:30

Sponsored by The York Companies

Media Sponsor:  The Raleigh Digest

First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall, Salisbury Street - Site 10 (CAP 150)

Celebrate the New Year with the spoken word! Enjoy a concert of poetry and other spoken word readings led by Greg Kirkpatrick.

Transactors Improv Company

7:30, 8:30, 10:00

Sponsored by Pearce Brinkley Cease + Lee PA Architecture

Media Sponsor:  Fifteen501 Magazine

Daniels Auditorium, North Carolina Museum of History - Site 2 (CAP 300)

“Ad-libbed lunacy” by the Triangle’s champions of improvisations theatre. The troop builds musical and sketch comedy from whatever is on the minds of audience members, whether George Bush or the cafeteria line. Imagine a fantastical journey through time, historic events colored by your imagination and whim; or a musical with songs, characters and script composed on-the-spot with your input. Utilizing music, dance, storytelling and their skills as actors, the Transactors have spent over 20 years honing their craft. Their unique hybrid style of improvisation has earned them a national reputation with appearances from Montreal to Austin and performances on NPR and the Canadian Broadcasting Company.
www.transactors.org

William Weisser

7:00 and 9:00

Sponsored by Captive-Aire Systems

Edenton Street United Methodist Church Sanctuary - Site 9 (CAP 1200)

William Weisser is a First Night favorite. He has performed with the Chicago Symphony and the North Carolina Symphony. Weisser has recently released a CD of 20th century organ works entitled "Music For A Sunday Afternoon". Don’t miss his take on classical wedding music, played on the newly refurbished Edenton Street UMC pipe organ.