KIDS' NIGHT OUT 2026!
The most creative New Year's Eve you will have with your family!
The First Act for the Young and Young-at-Heart kicks off with activities in the Monterey Conference Center at 3:00 pm, and features the Twilight Parade at 5:30 pm on Alvarado Street which serves as the Kids' Finale. Check out the fun activities to complete your artful time! After the Twilight Procession, FNM buttons will be needed for admission to all the indoor fun for the over-5 set.
Schedule details subject to change. Last updated 12/13/2025
Opening Ceremony
Site 1: Serra Ballroom, Conference Center 3:00 PM (Free to All)First Night Monterey 2026 opens with a traditional blessing by WHITE HAWK INDIAN COUNCIL FOR CHILDREN. Using dance, music, flowers and incense as part of Aztec cultural practices, they begin the opening of the Celebration with a traditional Aztec blessing. As we reflect on our past year, the ceremony presents opportunities to pause and look ahead to the new year. Please join them, bringing us together as we open First Night Monterey 2026!
Twilight Procession
Site: Alvarado Street, from Franklin Street to Pearl Street 5:30 PM (Free to All)Join us as we process down Alvarado Street from Franklin Street towards Pearl Street. The Procession starts at 5:30PM. First Night Monterey is first and foremost about community, so we hope you will join us in the Twilight Procession as we feature, artists, dancers, giant puppets, marching moms and many other local friends and neighbors. Procession route begins at Franklin Street down Alvarado Street (wrong way) towards Pearl.
FNM Kiosks: New Year's Eve Light-Ups and Button Sales
At Kids' Night Out in the Serra Ballroom, Conference Center (3:00‒5:00)Site 7: Alvarado Street near Pearl Street (4:00‒8:45)
Site 16: Alvarado Street at Del Monte, in the Plaza (3:00‒11:00)
Glow in the dark, light up the night, fly into the new year! First Night Monterey takes pride in providing New Year's Eve novelty items at family-friendly prices. Visit one of our kiosks to purchase the perfect glow-in-the-dark accessory that will add a magical sparkle to anyone's New Year's Eve look. This is a fundraiser for First Night; all proceeds benefit our year-round arts programs. Buy Admission Buttons here also.
INTERACTIVE ART ACTIVITIES FOR ALL
Bubble Stomp!
Site 2: Serra Ballroom, Conference Center 3:30‒5:00 PM (Free Activity)Pop! Pop! Pop! Who can resist squishing and twisting bubble wrap? Jump, hop, stomp, do the electric slide or break dance your way to popping every single bubble!
Celebration Hats and New Year's Eve Crowns
Site 3: Art Station 1, Serra Lobby, Conference Center 3:15‒5:00 PM (Free Activity)Site 19: Art Station 1, Serra Lobby, Conference Center 6:30‒9:15 PM (Button Venue)
Creativity and fun go hand in hand at First Night! Create your own festive New Year’s top hat by transforming a paper grocery bag with tulle, beads, pipe cleaners, and imaginative details. A joyful, all-ages activity that adds instant First Night Style.
Drum Making Experience with Carmel Sunset Rotary
Site 4: Art Station 2, Serra Lobby, Conference Center 3:30‒4:45 (Free Venue)Site 20: Art Station 2, Serra Lobby, Conference Center 6:15‒7:30 (Button Venue)
Carmel Sunset Rotary has got the beat! Join them to create colorful, one-of-a-kind drums, then grab your rhythm and jump right into the First Night fun!
Meet Monterey Firefighters and See their Truck!
Site 5: Fire Truck, Alvarado Street at Pearl 4:15‒5:30 (Free Activity)Monterey Fire Department will park a fire truck at the corner of Pearl and Alvarado Streets and the firefighters invite all future firefighters as well as fans to come meet them and see the truck up close! Enjoy some hot chocolate with them, snap a selfie with the firefighters and give them a heartfelt "Thank You!" for their service!
An Interactive Art Experience with Sunset Center
Site 8B: Sunset Center Make&Take, Alvarado Street 6:15‒9:15 (Free Venue)Sunset Center's Marjorie Evans Gallery presents “We’ve Got The Beat: Flowers Are the Music of the Earth”
- Seed Pod Sculpting • Hands-On • All Ages
- Shape clay. Shape hope. Shape the New Year
Join local ceramic artist Johanna Keefe and a team of Sunset Center volunteers for a hands-on creative experience. Sculpt a one-of-a-kind clay seed pod to take home and plant—an artwork that grows.
Paint It! Color Your New Year’s Resolution!
Site 8A: Resolution Venue, Alvarado Street 6:15‒10:00 (Free Activity)A collaborative public art project inviting First Nighters to paint their resolutions, aspirations, or inspiring words for the New Year; fostering creativity and community inspiration. Color your resolution!
Take a Selfie!
Site 10: Selfie Spot, Alvarado Street 6:15‒11:05 (Free to All)Site: 19, Serra Lobby Art Station 1, Conference Ctr 6:30‒9:15 (Button Venue)
Stand in front of our 2026 Selfie Backdrop theme "We've Got the Beat!" and take a selfie to commemorate your visit!
First Night Presents "Just Dance and Sing!" Karaoke
Site 8: Just Dance & Sing Stage, Alvarado Street 7:00‒9:15 PM (Free Activity)Join us at the FNM Dance/Karaoke Lounge where the stage is yours and the vibes are electric! Sing your heart out, dance like no one is watching, and create unforgettable memories.
KIDS' NIGHT OUT PERFORMANCES/WORLD MUSIC & DANCE
White Hawk Indian Council For Children
Site 1: Serra Ballroom, Conference Center 3:00‒3:15 | 3:45‒4:00 (Free to All)Site 7: Alvarado Street Galleria 6:15‒6:45 (Free to All)
White Hawk Indian Council For Children opens the First Night celebration with stunning costumes and traditional Aztec dances. White Hawk seeks to provide safe environments where youth can develop trust, to enhance the quality of life within their families and community and to develop a spiritual awareness through participation in traditional ceremonies and cultural arts. As they dance, ankle bands of seed pods and hand-held gourd rattles keep time to their steps while their feathered headdresses and fans shake colorfully as they move! They handcraft their regalia utilizing exotic skins, natural stones and beads, genuine leather and naturally molted exotic feathers for their headdresses.
Shinsho Mugen Daiko
Site 1: Serra Ballroom, Conference Center 3:15‒3:45 | 4:00‒4:45 (Free to All)Hear the thunder of the drums! Experience the exquisite physicality of these Taiko Drummers as they perform traditional Japanese drumming, incorporating elements of martial arts. Shinsho Mugen Daiko was founded in 1999 by Ikuyo Contant, as a group of drummers interested in studying the art of Japanese drumming. Taiko is a traditional art form that incorporates the elements of martial arts, focusing on centering oneself in the grounded position, the concentration, direction, and controlling of energy and breathing.
South Monterey County High School District Rock Band
Site 12: Franklin St Stage, Alvarado St.4:30‒5:00 | 6:15‒7:00 (Free to All)
Teen musicians from the South Monterey County High School District will take the stage, delivering high-energy performances inspired by ’90s grunge and pop rock favorites. Rock fans won’t want to miss the chance to enjoy these exciting sets performed by talented young artists from King City High School. Come out, show your support, and experience them live!!
Grumbling Ginger
Site 22: Steinbeck 3, Monterey Conference Center 6:30‒7:00 | 7:15‒7:45 | 8:00‒8:30 (Button Venue)Grumbling Ginger recreates the atmosphere of a British folk club; with songs, storytelling, and humor. Their performances blend songs, storytelling, humor, and a vibrant mix of acoustic instruments—including guitar, dulcimer, mandolin, celestaphone, doumbek, and bodhrán—creating an engaging, heartfelt musical experience with a distinctly Celtic-flavored folk-rock sound.
Monterey Bay Healing Tao & MPC Taiji Qigong
Site 7: Galleria, Alvarado Street 6:45‒7:30 (Free to All)More than just physical exercise or a fitness routine, MPC Taiji Qigong students perform a short, early-form Yang-style sequence known as Taiji Qigong I. Han Laoshi (teacher Leonard Han) and his senior student, David Murphy, will present solo demonstrations of traditional Chen Family Taijiquan hand and weapons forms. The group will invite the public to perform with them.
Flashpoint FireShow
Site 14: Alvarado Street Illumination Artists 7:00‒8:00 | 8:30‒9:30 | 10:00‒10:45 (Free to All)Flashpoint Fire Show is a breathtaking display of cutting-edge entertainment straight from your wildest dreams — an experience you won’t want to miss. Prepare to be amazed as stunningly skilled fire dancers perform elegant, high-energy choreography to electrifying music that will leave you in awe. These world-class artists promise to ignite the night with light, artistry, and pure magic at First Night Monterey!
DiFranco DanceProject
Site 7: Galleria, Alvarado Street 7:30‒8:00 | 8:15‒8:45 | 9:00‒9:30 (Free to All)The DiFranco DanceProject will present a lively, colorful, culturally diverse holiday program of dances representing New Orleans Jazz, Afro-Samba of Bahia and Afro-Cuban Fusion and even a unique blend of Afro-Celtic Dance. The DiFranco DanceProject is a local youth dance troupe of youth ranging from 8 through 16. The dancers are members of Dianne Lyle’s Afro-Latin Jazz Dance classes, originally an after-school dance program sponsored by the Pacific Grove Recreation Department.
Ashe Ensemble
Site 8B: Franklin Street at Alvarado Street 8:00‒8:45 | 9:00-9:45 | 10:00‒11:00 (Free to All)Jayson Fann, percussionist, and celebrated musicians with his band of international drummers and dancers will bring alive First Night Monterey with a celebration of rhythms from around the globe. Jayson is a multi-Instrumentalist, percussionist and drummer, specializing in Pan African percussion and drums with a special emphasis in Afro Cuban folkloric, Ghanaian, Yoruba, Jazz , Hip hop, Brazilian, Flamenco and middle eastern music. His work is centered in the creation of arts and cultural collaborations that foster connection with nature, intercultural dialogue and awareness.
Participatory DRUM CIRCLE before and between sets!
Black Irish Band
Site 22: Steinbeck 3, Conference Center 8:45‒9:15 | 9:30‒10:00 | 10:15‒10:45 (Button Venue)Hailing from the historic Gold Rush Country of America, the Black Irish Band of 28 years have a musical style that is as timeless as the rugged landscape of the west, a tribute to the people whose lives were spent building the world we now take for granted. The band has a large complement of traditional maritime and railroad music, as well as ethnic tunes in their repertoire, performed on instruments from the 1800s like fiddle, melodeon, banjo, and stand-up bass. They excel at Irish & Scottish, and American folk music with an assortment of original songs and traditional western ballads. The band's musical style captures the spirit of the immigrants of this land, the men and women who tamed the Wild West.
Monterey Bay Lion Dance Team
Site 7: Galleria, Alvarado Street 9:00‒9:30 | 9:45‒10:15 | 10:30‒11:00 (Free to All)Celebrate the New Year and lift your spirits with traditional Chinese lion dancing—an exhilarating art form that blends martial arts postures with the powerful rhythms of drums, cymbals, and gongs. The performance features elaborately crafted costumes representing the Lucky Lion and the jovial Happy Buddha. Moving with dreamlike grace, the lion displays human-like emotions and intelligence, symbolizing life, vitality, and the essence of humanity. Traditionally performed during Chinese Lunar New Year festivities, the lion dance is believed to usher in prosperity and good fortune for the year ahead.