

Friday 16 and Saturday 17 September 2022
1 show per evening
Starting time 7.30pm
3 different routes
The Healer's Path | Depart Placette King est | 7.30pm | 5$
The Waterways (sold out) | Depart barrage | 7.30pm | 5$
The Weaver's Path | Depart Parc-école Larocque | 7.30pm | free
The lantern parade presents you with a new story ...
... and three possible departures in town!
The Healer's
Path
The
Waterways
The Weaver's
Path
The parade is back and this year it will start from three different places in the city. It's up to you to choose your starting point, which will determine your route.
About
Once upon a time, a talented young garage owner was always drawing and making inventions of all kinds. Gradually, a dream began to form, that of an extraordinary music box, except he couldn't find the three pieces he needed to complete the machine. For generations, this dream remained unfulfilled, until the healer from Fleurimont, the weaver from Larocque and the lineman from the dams in downtown Sherbrooke came into his life.
The story of The Great Weave demonstrates the power of a dream and the strength of our links. In a show that begins in three different locations in the city of Sherbrooke, the Rivers of Light 2022 parade is a grand city choreography that represents an ode to traditional crafts... the true builders of our past and present.
An invitation
Music boxes, dams, electricity, ribbons, tarantulas, rivers, maypoles... in this collective quest through the streets of downtown Sherbrooke, the Théâtre des Petites Lanternes invites you to delve into a new and unexpected scenic universe to bring you into a most scintillating delirium. Whether you are 5, 20, 35 or 80 years old, the story of The Great Weave is also yours.
Lanterns
Don't forget to make your own lantern to bring with you and light your way. Sherbrooke, city of lanterns!
Did you make a lantern at one of our workshops? Don't forget to arrive early so we can insert the light.

CREDITS
Théâtre des Petites Lanternes Artistic Director | Angèle Séguin
Rivières de Lumières Artistic Director | Kristelle Holliday
Director of The Great Weave | Cyril Assathiany
Author | Marie Lupien-Durocher
Artist-designer-actor | Ilia Castro, Simon Durocher-Gosselin, Étienne Plante and Flàvia Nascimento
Storytellers | Ann-Catherine Choquette, Donald Dubuc and Marie Lupien-Durocher
Invited Artists | Marc Bénazet et Marie-Christine
Musicians | Pedro Díaz, Sankofa, Elise Legrand, Olivier Saint-Jean, Jesse Ens et Étienne Lepesqueux
Production Director | Étienne Leclerc
Technicial Director | Manuel López Alvarez
Set Designer | Sandra Tremblay
Musical Director | Francis Marcoux
Lightning Designer | Alexander Metson
Important information
-
This year there are 3 starting points, but you all finish at the same place (at the same location) near the Night Market at the Marché de la gare.
-
Each route is unique, you can choose what attracts you: the Weaver's Path, the Waterway or the Healer's Path. The routes are interrelated, but you will have a unique experience on each of them (and why not do two different routes? One on Friday and one on Saturday!)
-
Each route lasts about 90 minutes, but stay with us afterwards for a great lively Night Market and the late night music show!
-
Make and bring your lantern with you. This year there are special lanterns for each route, designed by Sandra Tremblay. You can either make a special lantern or a more generic one. We invite you to look at our Lantern Workshops page to learn more.
-
Performances will still take place if there is a little rain (bring an umbrella!)
Night Market
The route ends at the Night Market at the Marché de la gare. Stay with us to continue the party, discover local products and enjoy the entertainment. The Night Market is held in collaboration with the Marché de la gare and the Festival des traditions du monde de Sherbrooke and is an event in itself. It will be open from 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm on Friday and Saturday. Visit the Night Market page for more information.
WHICH ROUTE TO CHOOSE?
Note: the 3 routes will start at 3 different locations but will arrive at the same destination. After the final scene, you are all invited to the Night Market, which will take place at the Marché de la gare, for the rest of the festivities.
The Healer's Path
Departure point : Placette King Est
Start time : 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm)
Arrival point : Marché de la Gare
Type of route : by bus (after the first scene at the Placette, the voyage between the Placette and downtown will be by bus).
Atmosphere : festive, participatory, discovery
Number of people : 60 per evening
Price : 5$ per person | 15$ for a group of 4
(free 5 years and under)
Artist-designer: Ilia Castro
Storyteller : Ann-Catherine Choquette
Musicians : Elise Legrand, Olivier St-Jean, Jesse Ens and Étienne Lepesqueux
Summary : Closely linked to the land, the Healer invites us to discover her grandmother's Argentinean and Italian roots through a story of walnuts, spiders and dance. From there, a connection emerges with a very particular music box and a young garage owner...
The Waterway (SOLD OUT)
Departure point : 353 Frontenac road (old laundromat)
Starting time: 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm)
Arrival : Marché de la Gare
Type of route : the small paths close to the river
Atmosphere : intimate, strange, powerful
Number of people : 30 per evening
Price : 5$ per person | 15$ for a group of 4
(free for 5 year olds and younger)
Artist-designer : Simon Durocher-Gosselin
Invited Artist : Marie-Christine
Storyteller : Marie Lupien-Durocher
Musician : Pedro Díaz
Summary : Through three dams, we search for electricity. In an intimate journey, this riverside path lends itself to getting lost in the darkness, the tranquility and the power of the water. Whilst on our quest, remember to enjoy the moment.
The Weaver's Path
Departure : Parc Édouard-Jean-Desruisseaux (Parc-école), rue Larocque
Starting time: 7.30pm (Make sure you're there for 7pm so we can start on time!)
Arrival : Night-market
Type of route : through the streets
Atmosphere : big, festive, community
Number of people : unlimited
Price : free
Artist-designer : Flàvia Nascimento
Story-teller : Donald Dubuc
Musicians : Sankofa
Summary : An exceptionally talented weaver invites us to a big Brazilian party where she asks for help to make a belt. With the energy of the crowd, will we be able to help the mechanic to finalize his dream once and for all?
How the idea of The Great Weave
took shape
The idea behind The Great Weave was launched during Rivières de Lumières 2021, thanks to the character of the blacksmith developed by Étienne Plante. This character inspired a reflection between 12 artists around the existing relationship between traditional and contemporary trades. This reflection also raised questions about the traditional trades closely linked to Sherbrooke. A first pitch of the narrative was launched by Aurélien Marsan, then integrated into the vision of Rivières de Lumières by Kristelle Holliday and Cyril Assathiany, The final tale was created by Marie Lupien-Durocher with the contribution of our artist-designers Ilia Castro, Simon Durocher-Gosselin, Flàvia Nascimento and Étienne Plante.


Due to the limited number of people per performance for two of the courses (The Healer’s Path and The Waterway), we have chosen to charge a small fee per person ($5 per individual / $15 per group of 4). Free for children under 5 years old. We ask you to respect the reservation. If you can't make it let us know as soon as possible to offer the chance to someone else. A little reminder: The Weaver's Path does not require tickets.
Ticket Office


Friday 16
The Waterway
SOLD OUT

