New Year’s Eve revelers in Key West marked 2024’s arrival by watching the “drop” of a super-sized red high-heel shoe carrying female impersonator Christopher Peterson — the shoe’s new “passenger” who succeeded drag queen Sushi, a veteran of 25 previous drops.
Thousands of people gathered outside the Bourbon Street Pub complex for the island city’s lighthearted take on New York City’s ball drop in Times Square.
Peterson is renowned for his longstanding one-man cabaret show, in which he portrays Marilyn Monroe, Cher, Joan Rivers and Lady Gaga.
Dressed in a self-designed gown, he presided over the night’s festivities and entertainment — all while perched in the giant ruby slipper, suspended high above the crowd from the complex’s second-story balcony, and appearing regularly on CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast.
Key West businesses also hosted several other “drops,” including that of a gigantic manmade conch shell, the symbol of the Florida Keys; and a “pirate wench” who descended from atop a tall ship’s mast at Schooner Wharf Bar.
Activities elsewhere in the Keys included waterfront fireworks, beach parties and galas to greet 2024.
