CHARLESTON, WV (November 27, 2023) – The Charleston Dirty Birds hosted their biggest Friday night crowd ever at GoMart Ballpark on Black Friday as 5,317 people came to enjoy the Salango Law Dirty Birds Light the Night, presented by GoMart. Within 24 hours, a new record was established as 6,442 came to the two- million-light holiday light show on Saturday. Coinciding with the grand opening of the Holly Jolly Brawley celebration downtown, the combination of special events is raising Charleston’s stature as a holiday season destination.

“The continued support from this community is simply amazing. We have had people from across the country coming to GoMart Ballpark and universally loving Light the Night,” said Dirty Birds owner and CEO Andy Shea. “We’ve had more than 23,000 people coming through our light show since it started on Nov. 17, and I can't wait to see more smiling faces, family memories, and people from all walks of life enjoy Light the Night these next five weeks.”

The Dirty Birds’ leadership team has been working closely with Charleston Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin, the Charleston Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Downtown Charleston Association, KRT and others to promote Light the Night, Holly Jolly Brawley and other events to attract more visitors to West Virginia’s capital city this season. With huge crowds downtown as well all weekend and a special KRT Holly Jolly Trolley linking riders to both events, the effort is clearly paying off for our community.

“As you might imagine, this transformation of our ballpark took a lot of work from late in our baseball season to last through this holiday season,” Shea continued. “We have the best staff in professional baseball hands down, and they’ve dedicated countless hours and resources to make this event possible making these record crowds that much more special!”

Because of the popularity of Light the Night, with thousands of people lining up to buy tickets on the most popular nights, the team is encouraging people to order tickets on-line (https://www.dblightthenight.com/) so they can skip the lines at the box office and come right through the gate. Tickets for ice skating and all-activity
passes for kids are also available through the on-line link.

The Salango Law Dirty Birds Light the Night, presented by GoMart is scheduled to open at 5:00 pm every night (except tonight and Mon., Dec. 4). Closing time is 10:00 pm on Fridays, Saturdays and holidays and at 9:00 pm on all other Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.