Post by Justine Walsh.
Belgrave Lantern Parade has become a very well known and celebrated event on the local calendar, with up to 10,000 people from the Dandenongs and beyond attending. This year the parade, held on Saturday the 18th of June, will be celebrating the festival’s 10th year!
It is shaping up to be more spectacular than ever. There will be dancing, singing, drumming, musical & even circus performances! With a beautiful post-parade Village space for community to gather for delicious food, hot drinks and entertainment – complete with fire pits & lantern tipis – there will be plenty for everyone to see, hear & engage with!
2016’s parade is a very exciting one – the Lantern Parade team have been busy ensuring that the program is jam-packed and has something for everyone.
Before the parade – from 4pm onward – the main street will be alive with activity. With the road closing at 5pm and parade beginning at 5:45pm, the cold winter night won’t deter thousands of people from congregating and watching the playful & spectacular beauty of the parade, or walking along with their beautiful lanterns!
At 6pm, The Village (in Hayes Carpark) will open, and will run until 9pm for people to continue to enjoy themselves & celebrate. There will be delicious local food, hot chocolate, face painting, fire pits to warm your hands, singalongs with local musicians to join in, performances by local poets & storytellers, beautiful glowing decorations and giant lit-up lantern tipis decorated by local school children and artists! With spaces for young & old to play, sit back and relax, sing, listen and get cosy inside a lantern tipi, there will be ample opportunity to bask in the gentle afterglow of the parade and experience the sensory delights of celebrating our community in the depths of winter.
Lantern making workshops have been running for the past couple of months and many beautiful handmade works have been crafted specially for the event. Ranging from gorgeous decorated pyramids to stunning detailed creatures, the parade will be quite a sight to behold! The Belgrave Lantern Artists have of course been working on many wonderful large structures to make this year’s parade move & feel even better than ever!
There is only one more workshop left, on the morning of the festival itself, for those of you who would like to learn how to make your own lantern to bring – at the Belgrave Library (please call the Library on 9800 6489 to book in, limited places available). Check out the website & facebook page for further details!
We are always looking for more volunteers to help out on the day – contact us at celebrate@belgravelanterns.org.au for info and to get on board!
Keep an eye out for parade program flyers about in local stores & online to make sure you catch the performances you want to see on the night.
Contact Justine at justine@entwinearts.com.au
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