This is not your typical New Year’s party.

First Night St. Louis is an alcohol-free celebration of the arts, taking buildings along Grand Boulevard from the St. Francis Xavier College Church to the Grandel Theater, and turning them into a hodge-podge of performances and decorations.

Grand Center, Inc. has organized this year’s event to feature storytellers, jazz, classical and world music, and a series of theatrical performances.

Festivities will kick off at 6 p.m. at the corner of Grand and Lindell Boulevard. Local celebrities, actors, musicians and more will be on hand, as they “Light Up the Night,” an illuminated procession that brightens the streetscapes and buildings on Grand to Washington Avenue. Passersby can see a series of jugglers, stilt walkers and fire-eaters.

Beginning on the main stage at 6:30 p.m. a rock band will entertain those braving the cold outside with, “Ticket to the Beatles.”

However, for those looking for something inside and warmer, College Church, Grandel Theater, Fox Theatre, Third Baptist Church, Sheldon Concert Hall and Continental Life Building and Woolworth Building all feature series of shows, events and spectacles that will last all night.

The Saint Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra-Brass Players will be performing at the College Church beginning at 6:30 p.m. Following them will be Benie and Barbara McDonald, Irish musicians. The ballroom in the church basement will feature three musicians performing from 7 p.m. until 11 p.m.

Further up Grand, at the Continental Building, St. Louis’ own jazz trumpeter, Prince Wells will lead an old-style big band in jazz and swing.

The Woolworth building features a wishing wall, where people can place their New Year’s wishes on the building. Mimes, storytelling and face painting are also planned at Woolworth.

The Sheldon will feature Gary and Roberta Gordon from Southern Illinois. The two are performing a bluegrass and acoustic music from 6:45 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. World music artist Farshid Etniko begins at 9:30 pm.

Third Baptist Church’s choir will not only perform in the sanctuary of the church this New Year’s, but a variety of children’s entertainment is planned.

The St. Louis Black Repertory Company begins at 6:30 p.m. with “The Holiday Show,” a collection of songs and stories that lasts until 7:30 p.m. “The Spoken Word,” features various poets and follows the first show. A bonfire will be made at the corner of Grand and Lindell Boulevard before the finale of fireworks.

Tickets are $7.50 in advance through Metrotix at (314) 534-1111, or $10 the night of the event. For more information, visit www.firstnightstl.org.