Back by extremely popular demand, the New Year’s Eve Bubbly Bash at River Run Lodge was again a sold-out success. The Junior Patrons of the Sun Valley Center for the Arts (SVCA) together with Sun Valley Resort sold over 700 tickets this year, and yet there was still a line out the door, a wait-list and even a few ticket scalpers lurking outside.
Inside, the free champagne was flowing—huge snowflakes hung from the ceiling, white linen cocktail tables scattered the room and a sea of sharp tuxedos and little black dresses crowded the bar. A Los Angeles-based DJ played all the party favorites, accompanied by live drummers, while the bartenders wiped their brows trying to keep the cocktails full.
Kathryn McNeal of the SVCA said that this year, they expanded the venue to accommodate such high demand from the 2011 Bubbly Bash, but it still wasn’t enough. “We are definitely doing it again next year,” she said. “We would never stop doing a sold-out event!”
The SVCA, or “The Center,” is located in downtown Ketchum and holds six art exhibitions annually, including music and dance performances, classes, lecturers, guest speakers, authors and, of course, art exhibits. Proceeds from the Bubbly Bash, this year sponsored by Barefoot Wine and Bubbly, went to benefit the SVCA and Sun Valley Resort (and at $50 a ticket, proceeds must have been considerable).
As the evening progressed, all party groups converged on the dance floor—couples swayed back and forth, trying not to slip on spilt cocktails and confetti, youngsters bounced around, singing arm in arm, and some of the more reserved just bobbed in place and tried to avoid getting stabbed by a stiletto. All were smiling and happy, clinking glasses together and grabbing someone around the shoulder.
.jpg)
The countdown to midnight was followed by plenty of smooching, face-licking, romantic pecking and, in some cases, red-faced grins. People flocked to the photo booth to dress up in pink boas and sparkly hats, mustaches and reading glasses and look sexy (or creepy) for the camera. Some began to stumble home after midnight, kicking off their dangerously high heels and jumping in a cab or on the back of a friend, but the majority saw the party until the end.
When all was said and done, tired staff began to sweep up the golden streamers and empty bottles, ushering the late-night revelers out the door. Couples cozied up, gathering their coats around their necks, to walk back across the snowy bridge. The rowdy stragglers skipped along behind them, with lopsided party hats and tooting kazoos, puffing breath up at the stars and howling at another year down.
