By Patricia McDougall
Special to the AFRO

On Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024 Things to Do DC held their New Year’s Eve Cirque du 2025 International Global Gala at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington D.C. The event was an entertaining affair, complete with cirque performers, salsa dancers, a live band and a DJ. There were also appearances by the Washington Nationals’ mascots, Teddy and Abe. Each room had a theme from karaoke to the sound of African drums, as dancers moved across the room. At midnight balloons fell from the ceiling as the guests danced and toasted their way into 2025.

  • Linda McClean (left, front); Simone Sargeant; Denise Stephenson; Alana McKeever (back, left), Christina Gonzalez and Yvonne Pinder celebrate the New Year in style. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Things To Do DC’s New Year’s Eve Cirque du 2025 International Global Gala draws a crowd. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Raeanna Pittman (left) enjoys dinner with Quentin Hardy before ringing in the new year. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Tiffany Harris (left) and Micah Brown perform as part of a Guinean West African dance ensemble with Aziz Ahmed on djimbe. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Candra “Chef Candra” Hardy (left), from Montgomery County, Md., enjoys the evening with Lisa Howard, of Staten Island, N.Y. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Drummer Duane Smith brings in the New Year with the sounds of the drums. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Los Quetzales Mexican Dance Ensemble performs at the New Year’s Eve celebration featuring Arnoldo Borja (front, left), Paulina Garcia and Diana Garcia (back, left) and Abigail Aquino. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Asian Lion Dance performers perform during the New Year’s Eve Cirque du 2025 International Global Gala. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Ryan “DJ Pumpkin” Browne (left), Richard “DJ Richie Sly” Barrowes and Joel Brathwaite the sound engineer keeps the music going through the night. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Washington’s mascots Teddy (left) and Abe from the Nationals had a good time with the guests at the New Year’s Eve Cirque du 2025 International Global Gala. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)
  • Beau Wells (left) enjoys the party with Gabriel Christian and Joan Christian at the New Year’s Eve VIP Dinner. (AFRO Photos/ Patricia McDougall)