The Dartford Festival of Light is set to return to the town on Friday 17th November and will feature the annual magical lantern parade, live roaming musical performances and fireworks finale. The Festival of Light will take place between 6pm and 7.30pm and is produced once again by Cohesion Plus, Dartford Borough Council and Kent Equality Cohesion Council.

This Festival is supported by Arts Council England and local business KKB Group. For the first time ever Visual Elements will be lighting up Central Park as part of the celebrations, installing dazzling light installations along the entrance to the park. The light display will be available for the public to enjoy over the evening.

11 local schools will be taking part in the lantern parade which will start on the High Street and climax in Central Park with a firework display. In the build-up schools have been working with arts organisation Same Sky on the lanterns.

The parade will also feature a range of different acts including Bloco Fogo Samba, a local collective and experts in samba percussions brining the feel of Rio Carnival to the town centre as well as DDFK who will be performing brass renditions of pop songs and classic hits. Further entertainment will be provided by Kings of Dhol who will bring their signature fusion sounds and percussions from North India via North Kent as well as the Native Oysters Band, a New Orleans style band who will bring sounds of the Mississippi. As always roaming stilt walkers will wow and interact with the crowds taking selfies and waving to passers-by’s.

Gurvinder Sandher MBE DL who produces the Festival commented “The Festival is now in its 14th year which is a wonderful achievement and we are once again proud to be working with Dartford Borough on this community celebration which brings together residents from across the borough. This year in addition to the lantern parade we will have an array of light installations in and around Central Park which we hope everyone will enjoy as well as the fireworks finale.”.