Previous years events in the neighbourhood included lantern making and the burning of a large paper mache structures in Alexandra Park that were lit on fire by the fire breathers while giant puppets were marched through the streets and bands played tunes that filled the streets with melodies. In 2023 the construction work in the park precluded the terminal gathering of the crowds that marched from Kensington Market, down along Dundas Street and into the park - so no burning structure. Hopefully the parade and the burning structure/fire finale will return in 2024. UPDATE: a CBC story tells us that the parade and the fire finale in Alexandra Park will not happen in 2024 and they hope to return to the park in 2025.
Fire breathing during the opening ceremonies at Augusta and Oxford
Celebrating the return of light with a festival in the Kensington began in 1988 and continues in 2024, now the 35th annual festival, starting at the intersection of Augusta Avenue and Oxford Street at 6pm on the 21st. Enjoy the street performances and community involvement in the dark of night as the event continues until 10pm with road closures beginning at 5pm. The crowd was smaller this year as the parades and burning man fire finale in the park were cancelled for a second time. There was also no maps of the event so it was a little confusing and no one seemed to know what was actually planned for the evening.
There was another area near Bellevue Square Park on Augusta Avenue that contained a number of fire performers.
See previous Solstice Celebrations at the following links.
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