Sky divers, dancers, pop stars, F-16 fly-overs and a lot of noise — it sounds like the Superbowl. But the events that brought music, lights and fire to Rice-Eccles Stadium Saturday night were all part of Salt Lake's first-ever Freedom Blast.

Since the demise of Red Hot Fourth three years ago, the University of Utah's stadium has been relatively quiet on the Fourth of July. But this year producer John Whittaker said the debut Freedom Blast had as much glitz if not more than Provo's ever-popular Stadium of Fire.

Whittaker and his wife, Sheri, both producers of the show, brought with them 27 years of experience from Provo's Stadium of Fire — 10 of those were years they were producing.

Whittaker said they left Provo's production to go in a different creative direction and decided to take the reins of a Salt Lake celebration.

"We have taken all of the strengths from past Stadium of Fire shows and brought (them) to Freedom Blast," Whitaker said.

Around 28,000 people showed up to celebrate the Independence Day program that was kicked off with sky divers dropping into the stadium and 1,066 dancers, cheerleaders and gymnasts flooding the field.

A half-pipe ramp was placed centerfield for BMX riders and roller-bladers in a Stunt Team All-Star performance, while the corner of the field held a pool for high divers.

Four F-16s from the Hill Air Force Base 388th Fighter Wing did a fly-over at the end of the national anthem, and soldiers and veterans held a military tribute for fallen soldiers.

Additionally, 25 immigrants took the Oath of Allegiance to become U.S. citizens. The new Americans come from 20 countries around the world, from Tonga and Peru to Germany and the Philippines. They join more than 450,000 citizens who are naturalized each year in the United States.

Plus, in a video message, 11-year-old Brennan Hawkins and his family gave a big thanks to those who helped find him after he became lost recently in the Uinta Mountains.

Kelly Clarkson, Fox television network's first American Idol, headlined the event. Then pyro-specialists lit up the sky with a fireworks show set to music — delayed in midstream by a technical glitch.

Whittaker said he expects it will take a few years for the show to sell out, but he plans to continue the effort in the years to come.

"This is awesome," said Natalie Phillips, 11, one of the many dancers in the show. "I was kind of nervous. The biggest crowd I have ever performed in front of was a thousand, but this is really cool."

"We just feel really good about this," said Whittaker. "It's really a fast-paced, high-energy show, and we hope to add more creative elements in the future."

The show itself takes a year of planning, with more than 150 people on staff to pull it off — 99 percent of the staff were pulled directly from Stadium of Fire.

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E-mail: terickson@desnews.com