Rivers of Light is the annual lantern festival in Sherbrooke that marks the beginning of autumn. Each year, with smiles up to our ears and a great desire to be together, we share the program for the year’s event. We have come to realize that our festival is an incredible opportunity to exchange, discover and dream while spending time and being together. We love being together. We love being part of a family.

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This year is different of course, impacted by Covid-19. Faced with the impossible, we have decided to seize the opportunity and create something which stays true to our vision, with a few slight tweaks. May the magic of the lanterns remain alive, may they continue to dance in the twilight, may they defy and beautify the current situation!

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Since we can't invite you to ours, we have decided to invite ourselves to yours!

Together with our partners, we want to share with you a little spark, a new idea... how about lighting up all of Quebec together?

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What if we placed a lantern at our doors and windows during the first weekend of the Journées de la Culture at the end of September? What if we let ourselves be carried away by happiness and joy? What shapes would your lanterns take? What story would they tell us? 

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Light Up Quebec is the gateway to a new festival program that seeks to open and create dialogues with others.

 

We have worked with artists on creating new lantern videos for you to be able to make from the comfort of your home and we’re offering various interactive workshops to guide you whilst you’re making them.

 

We have also identified alternative ways to work with our Sherbrooke businesses downtown and we are running a pan-Quebecois lantern-making competition.

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At the heart of Rivers of Light this year is the story of a fisherman and the lanterns of happiness, which we hope will delight young and not-so-young here in Sherbrooke.

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If you live in the Eastern Townships, come and see us from the 25th to the 27th of September for a magical weekend! If you live outside of the Townships, we are waiting for your photos of all those thousands of lanterns that will shine inside or outside your home, no matter where you live in Quebec.

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A big thank you to our partners and volunteers who have trusted us for years, and a big welcome to the newcomers who have decided to embark in this lantern frenzy!

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Together, let Quebec glimmer and sparkle and give us the opportunity to celebrate the arrival of an autumn full of promise.

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Hurrah for the lanterns!

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Kristelle Holliday
Executive and Co-Artistic Director
Théatre des Petites Lanternes