No Independence Day celebration is complete without fireworks–even if you just light a couple of sparklers in your backyard. But if you really want to see a show, check out these show,
The city that cradled the American Revolution celebrates our nation’s birthday in style with a Boston Pops concert and fireworks show along the Charles River.
Comedian Craig Ferguson hosts the show , which begins at 8 pm, and country music sensations Rascal Flatts will also appear. At 10:30, the fireworks begin. More than 20,000 pounds of explosives will be used for the display. For the first time, this year the show will include shells with a 10-inch diameter shells that climb to 1,500 feet or one and a half times the height of the Hancock Tower.
Chicago
The city with the big shoulders hosts two nights of fireworks starting July 3 at the Taste of Chicago Festival. The event at the Petrillo Music Shell starts with an 8 pm concert by the Grant Park Orchestra. At 9:30, the fireworks begin with a soundtrack supplied by a local radio station.
Houston
Houston’s birthday bash features the nation’s largest land-based fireworks show, plus live concerts from Sara Evans, Miranda Lambert, Jo Dee Messina and The Shirelles.
And that’s just the beginning. Chevy’s Freedom Over Texas will have a mini-auto show, championship men’s and women’s volleyball games, face-painting, rides and jugglers. The Budweiser Beer Garden will take care of your thirst and Chevy’s Liberty Park will display military artifacts and vehicles.
The events kick off at 4 pm July 4; the fireworks start at 9:30.
Mt. Rushmore
South Dakota’s National Monument will host a fireworks display on July 3.
The festivities, including music and entertainment, begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 3 and culminate with the highly anticipated fireworks display at 9:15 p.m. Presidential re-enactors, Retro Bill (the D.A.R.E. Safety Buddy) and several musical groups will perform on three different stages and in the two theaters in the Lincoln Borglum Museum throughout the day.
New Orleans
New Orleans calls its July 4th extravaganza Go 4th on the River. The Dueling Barges Fireworks show begins at 9. Patriotic music sets the tone as the two barges along the Mississippi try to outdo each other in a display that’s ranked fifth on the American Pyrotechnics Association’s “must see” list.
New York
The nation’s biggest fireworks show takes place in New York, where Macy’s Department store has sponsored the show for more than 30 years. Six barges stationed between 23rd and 42nd Streets in the East River set off 30,000 aerial shells and special effects. There are electric set pieces on the barges, and the New York Fire Department gets in on the act with fire boats shooting red, clear, and blue water 300 feet over the river. The show, which takes a year to plan and coordinate, uses 55 times more fireworks than the average show in the US.
Philadelphia
Philadelphia celebrates Independence Day for eight days, starting June 28 and ending July 6. The fireworks take place July 4 at 26th Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Russell Tompkins, Jr. and the New Stylistics open the 8 pm show on the 4th. The Philadelphia natives are followed by R&B artist John Legend. Then the fireworks begin. Set to the theme The Melting Pot, USA, this year’s show show includes music from nations around the world and reflects the colors in each country’s national flag.
Saint Louis
Because of the recent floods, Fair St. Louis will move to the Soldier’s Memorial area of downtown St. Louis, changing the name of this year’s facility to “Live OFF the Levee.” But the annual party will be as spectacular as ever.
Fair St. Louis is a 10-day celebration that kicks off Friday, July 4 and runs Friday and Saturday nights through August 2. The free event features nightly fireworks.
Festivities begin with the Veiled Prophet Parade, a 130-year tradition that’s similar to the Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans. The parade starts at 10 am. At 11, the fair begins. At 1 pm Drake Bell from Nickelodeon’s “Drake and Josh” show will perform, followed by a 6 pm concert by Shannon Nicole. Joss Stone will perform at 8 pm. Fireworks begin at 9:15.
The Sauce Café will be available Saturdays from July 5 through August 2. Each night a different chef from one of the city’s top restaurants will prepare a three-course prix-fixe menu. There will be two seatings a night–from 6-7:45 pm and from 8-10 pm. Dinners are $30 per person, not including beverage, tax and gratuity.
San Diego
San Diego’s largest fireworks display, the seventh annual Big Bay celebration, begins at 9 pm. on Friday, July 4. The show can be seen from almost anywhere around the northern portion of San Diego Bay, as well as from Embarcadero Marina Parks north and south and Coronado Tidelands Park in Coronado.
Barges off Harbor and Shelter islands and the Embarcadero and Seaport Village/Coronado Landing explode with rockets red glare and bombs bursting in air for 20 minutes. More than 500,000 people are expected to come to the waterfront to watch the show.
Washington, DC
Everyone should experience July 4 at our nation’s capital at least once in their lifetime.
The day starts with the National Independence Day Parade, which is sponsored by the National Parks Service. The parade showcases bands from every state as well as fife and drum corps, floats, military units, giant balloons and drill teams.
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival along the Mall features American food and crafts from all 50 states.
But the big spectacle of the day is the PBS-sponsored show, “A Capitol Fourth,” a concert and fireworks display on the West Lawn of the Capitol. Grammy winners Huey Lewis and the News, American Idol winner Taylor Hicks, rock ‘n’ roll legend Jerry Lee Lewis, Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell, classical musician Hayley Westenra and soprano Harolyn Blackwell will perform under the direction of conductor Erich Kunzel. The Choral Arts Society of Washington, under the direction of Norman Scribner, returns to the show. The Joint Armed Forces Color Guard of the Military District of Washington will also be featured on this as well as the United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps.
The concert ends with a bang in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture” featuring the U.S. Army Herald Trumpets and live cannon fire.
