A new event will march into Altrincham’s Christmas calendar this Saturday – a town-wide lantern parade finishing with a singalong finale in Stamford Square.
Classes from two local schools, Stamford Park Junior School and Bollin Primary School, have been busy this week making lanterns for the event, and members of the public will also be able to join in with lantern-making workshops before the parade begins.
These will run at Open Studios Altrincham (43-47 Stamford New Road) from 11.30-3.30pm (last entry 3pm) and are free of charge.
All participants in the Lantern Parade are invited to gather in Goose Green at 4pm, where they will be joined by street performers and professional lantern operators led by artist Russel Kirk, plus a troupe of dancers from Cardwells Dance School and brass ensembles from Aura Music Academy.
The parade will then depart at 4.30pm, making its way out of Goose Green, along Denmark Street, down the Tesco walkway, left onto Moss Lane, left again onto Stamford New Road, right onto Regent Road and down the full length of George Street to a singalong finale in Stamford Square (by Wilko and House of Fraser).
This will be led by choirs from The Music Place and Magic Voices, with the audience encouraged to join in with Christmas songs and carols, and will last around 15 minutes.
Led by a samba band and guaranteed to bring a touch of Christmas magic to Altrincham, the Lantern Parade promises to be an impressive sight, with Moss Lane and Stamford New Road recommended as the best viewing points for spectators. Rolling road closures will be in place, and motorists are advised to avoid the route of the parade between 4.15 and 5.15pm as far as possible.
Linda Roy, communications manager for Altrincham Unlimited, said: “For the past few years we have had a mini Lantern Parade as part of Christmas Lights Switch-On day, but now the Switch-On has become such a popular standalone event, we felt the time was right to take the Lantern Parade further around Altrincham and involve as many areas of the town as possible.
“The beauty of this year’s Lantern Parade is that it should be as much fun to view as to join in, so we would recommend that spectators grab a coffee or hot chocolate and bag a good spot on Moss Lane or Stamford New Road to watch the full parade twinkle by.
“Saturday will also see Christmas Markets from 10am-4pm and a Santa’s Grotto at House Bar and Restaurant on Goose Green from 12-4pm so the Lantern Parade is just one of many excellent reasons to visit Altrincham this weekend.”
Full details of the 2017 Christmas calendar of events in Altrincham can be found in the What’s On guide at www.altrinchamunlimited.co.uk
