The holidays are only a few months away and Beverly Hills is already planning some of its signature festivities. In a meeting on Aug. 12, the Rodeo Drive committee met with City Council liaisons to discuss the 2024 Holiday Lighting Ceremony, currently proposed to take place on Nov. 14. The liaisons also addressed a request from the Young Israel of North Beverly Hills synagogue to host a Simchat Torah celebration this October. Liaisons Mayor Lester Friedman and Councilmember Mary Wells both expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming celebrations.
2024 Holiday Lighting Celebration
The Rodeo Drive Committee has announced the theme of “Rodeo Nights, Holiday Lights” for this year’s lighting ceremony. The main stage will feature entertainment from NBC SongLand winner Greg Scott, the UCLA a cappella group ScatterTones and students from Beverly Hills High School’s Center for Performing Arts.
Holiday banners will also adorn the street poles throughout the entire city. Josh Morgerman, creative director of Symblaze, designed multiple options for the liaisons to vote on. As he explained, the banners play an important role in setting the theme of the entire holiday season. “When we came up with these creative concepts, we tried to think about how they could play out beyond street pole banners,” he said.
Morgerman proposed three different options and ultimately, the liaisons decided on the third option, which Friedman described as “rich” and “moving.” This design incorporates holiday symbols such as Christmas trees and menorahs with the words “ring in together,” “sparkle together,” “rejoice together” and “give together.” It also utilizes hues of blue, red, green, black and gold. These banners will be utilized during the holiday season for the next three years.
Simchat Torah Celebration
At the meeting, Young Israel of North Beverly Hills Rabbi Aryeh Perlstein proposed a Simchat Torah celebration on Oct. 24 from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. The event will commemorate the anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, which fell on the Hebrew calendar date of last year’s Simchat Torah. It will bring together other synagogues and Jewish communities in surrounding areas to celebrate the holiday in north Beverly Hills. “Our hope is that they are all planning to join us for this event to create one event and evening in memory, as well as joy, singing and dancing, which is what the holiday is really all about,” said Perlstein. He hopes this will become a tradition of honoring victims as part of the celebration for years to come. “The idea was, if we could bring people together in unity, to celebrate together, to do so out in public, it would be very memorable for the community.”
The event will not incorporate music on speakers or a stage, but rather members of the community singing together in the street. It’s not about rides and food vendors, Perlstein explained, but about gathering and celebrating as one.
Mayor Friedman and Councilmember Wells noted that a high level of security would be needed. “I think security is always the most important factor, and I would want to feel very comfortable that we have thought this plan through completely,” said Wells.
The proposal will be fine-tuned and brought to the next City Council meeting for approval.
