All times are tentative.
6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Lantern Decoration
Lanterns and art supplies will be available from 6:00 to 7:30 to decorate with art, messages, memorials, or anything else you’d like until supplies run out. $5 donation per lantern suggested. Lanterns may also be decorated before the event — click here for more information.
6:00 pm - 7:45 pm
Community Performances
Fun community performances begin the program, which includes youth, amatuer, and professional music and dance throughout the early evening. Between each performance, community DJs will spin diverse tunes. Times are approximate.
6:15 pm: Acre Dance Group (Traditional Puerto Rican/modern fusion)
6:30 pm: STEM Academy Color Guard
6:45 pm: Mill Advised (Modern dance)
7:15 pm: Pyne Arts School (Drumming)
6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Food Vendors
Food from faith-based and ethnic organizations and small businesses will be available for sale during the entire length of the event. This is the only opportunity to sample food from some of these vendors outside of the Lowell Folk Festival!
Say Da Nar: Burmese Street Food
Holy Trinity Orthodox Church: Greek Pastries and Gyros
Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association: Traditional Cambodian Food
Purple Carrot Bakery: American Comfort Food
St. Patrick’s Catholic Parish: Latin/Spanish Street Food
Drinks Tent: Craft beers, hard seltzer, and hard cider
7:30 pm - 8:15 pm
Main Program
A special program with prayers, dedications, and announcements will come right before the launch of the lanterns. It’s the moment we all come together before the main event!
Kick-off: Real Mane TMP
The main program will be kicked off by Real Mane TMP, a former Child Soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is an International artist whose music and performances range from Afro-beat to Hip-Hop to Pop with a mission to “Educate, entertain, and inspire.”
8:15 pm
Lantern Launch
At sundown, our volunteers will launch the hundreds of lanterns into the Western Canal. This is a participatory event, as the audience is invited to carry lanterns to the launch point. The lanterns will slowly fill the canal over the next hour.
8:15 pm - 10:00 pm
Dance Party
A dance party with lively music from two of Lowell’s cultures closes out the evening. During and after the first performance, New England’s famous Circque de Light will perform LED dances.
8:15 pm: REVMA REVMA plays a blend of village, island, and urban roots music from all across Greece. Evolved from centuries old traditional tunes and stories, their music features powerful oddmetered rhythms, lively island dances, mesmerizing polyphonic ballads, and delicate modal tones.
9:15 pm: The Ray Liriano Experience The lead singer/songwriter was born and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and fuses influences like Jimmy Hendrix with Latin music legends like Juan Luis Guerra. The band plays all over Greater Boston and is visiting Lowell just for Points of Light!