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Super Bowl City Opening Night Live On KPIX 5

Watch COUNTDOWN TO GOLD, A KPIX 5 Super Bowl 50 Special Report | Saturday, 7:00 p.m.

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – Thousands were expected to gather along San Francisco's Embarcadero Saturday for a night filled with fireworks and the music of local rocker Chris Isaak as the festivities for Super Bowl 50 officially get underway.

If you want to avoid the crowds, you can watch all the events on KPIX CBS 5 starting at 7 p.m. hosted by Ken Bastida and Liz Cook.

The ceremonies open with the official relighting of the Bay Bridge Lights.

The unique art installation on the western span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge was installed in 2013 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of opening of the span.

Designed by artist Leo Villareal, the work includes some 25,000 white LED lights along the 1.8-mile span of the bridge between Yerba Buena Island and San Francisco.

The lights are turned on and off by a computer that creates a pattern on the bridge's cables.

The project initially was not intended to be a permanent display and was turned off last year. But funding and the demand for its returned as brought back the display which will officially be relit on Saturday night.

Once the bridge lighting has concluded, the thousands gathered the Embarcadero will be treated to an amazing fireworks display created by Pyro Spectaculars by Souza and sponsored by Macy's.

The fireworks will be launched from barges near the Ferry Building and contain at least 50 musically choreographed segments.

On Friday, pyrotechnicians were loading and wiring about 15,000 firework shells onto two barges in the Bay. Some shells are almost a foot in diameter, weighing 35 pounds.

"Each one has its own unique address and its own individual igniter that will be sent back to four computers to launch this into the sky," said fireworks display designer Gary Souza.

The show's producers are the same ones behind the fireworks spectacular in New York City for the 2015 4th of July.

Saturday's show will be a 12-minute synchronized display set to music including football anthems and music from past halftime performers.

"And then we listen to that and say, what's it sounds like, what's it feel like, what colors, what passionate moments," explained Souza.

This one will light hearts in the sky during "I Left My Heart In San Francisco," but the coup de grace promises to be at the very end.

"It's the Countdown to Gold, and gold is going to come to life. 50 bursts in 50 seconds. Its going to be a grand finale like none other," said the show's Executive Producer Amy Kule.

Once the fireworks come to a thunderous end, all eyes will turn to the City Stage of Super Bowl City located in Sue Bierman Park located next to Justin Herman Plaza.

On stage will be local music icon Chris Isaak in the first of what will be a week of free concerts.

Super Bowl City Free Concerts Lineup

The rockabilly star is best known for his hits "Wicked Game," "Baby Did A Bad, Bad Thing" and "Somebody's Crying."

 

 

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