As the days get shorter, the nights will soon be getting brighter in Stratford.
Lights on Stratford is lighting up this winter starting this week. The award winning outdoor festival begins on Friday, Dec. 16.
Zac Gribble, the festival’s director, spoke with StratfordToday about the festival’s inception and how they have expanded.
“Now that we are less tethered by health and safety restrictions,” Gribble said. “We can really put our best foot forward as a community.”
Market Square will host Jen Lewin’s THE POOL, an array of concentric circles that light up when touched. Tom Patterson Island will have the Canadian premiere of AFFINITY, an interactive light sculpture from Australian-based company Amigo & Amigo. The Tom Patterson Theatre light display, which launches a little later on Dec. 19, will light up the theatre and reflect across the Avon River.
And those are only a few of the features planned.
Gribble has been a part of the festival since its inception. It was born in the early days of the pandemic as a response to the tourism crisis that hit the city as stay-at-home orders were issued by the province.
“It was focused on a safe way for Stratford to express itself culturally, being outdoors,” Gribble explained. “But also with an eye to the future of expanding our seasonality from a cultural draw to include the wintertime.”
Gribble and his team are looking at the off-season of Stratford and want to come out of the pandemic with a robust, year-round tourism economy.
Even though restrictions are easing, Gribble said that the core philosophy of the festival remains the same, and for good reason.
“At its heart, this is still an outdoor festival. We have a great relationship with the City of Stratford in terms of utilizing our amazing public spaces – from Market Square and the park system, to really use the city as a stage.”
This year, Lights on Stratford has expanded to downtown storefronts and other indoor locations.
Last year, Lights on Stratford saw 80,000 people interacting with the main displays. Two thirds of those people came from 40 km away and beyond.
Gribble said they are expecting 100,000 people to attend Lights on Stratford over the six week period that it runs. While those are only predictions, Gribble said that the conditions are favourable for it to be very busy.
It all starts at 4:45 p.m. on Friday with opening remarks at Market Square before the lights are turned on. They will light up from 5-10 p.m. every evening for six weeks – including on holidays like Christmas, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Eve - lasting until Jan. 27.
A shuttle service will be available and the Stratford-Perth Museum’s Culture Cab program will return to help festival goers navigate the city-wide attractions. It is a completely free festival, including the hop-on-hop-off shuttle service.
For more information, visit Lights on Stratford’s website, where you can find an interactive map to help navigate the festival.
