Everything You Need to Know About the Waterfront Fireworks Show on New Year’s Eve

Photo by Matt Stanley

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, a crew of 10 loaded shells onto barges at the Navy Yard that will become our resplendent fireworks show on New Year’s Eve. There will be two shows this year, utilizing four tons (!) of net explosives from everywhere from Spain and Italy to China.

Though you may not hear it if you’re taking in the show from a rooftop in Center City, each fireworks display will be choreographed to its own curated soundtrack.

For you early birds, the first show starts at 6 p.m., with a “Salute to the Big Screen” theme. The fireworks will be synchronized to songs from film composers Hans Zimmer and John Williams, including tunes from Pirates of the Caribbean, The Lone Ranger, and, of course, Rocky.

The midnight show will be backed up by 2014 anthems, like “Celebrate” by Pitbull, “Break Free” by Ariana Grande and “Battleships” by Daughtry. The grand closer, “a special silver crown finale that will fill the sky with glittering silver,” will be set to Patrick Stump’s “This City.”

According to a press release sent out by the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation, spectators can expect to see traditional displays, like “nautical fireworks, which appear to skip along the water, and Girandolas (also called UFOs), which are some of the most complex fireworks to make, and involve flying horizontal wheels.”

Happy fireworking!