• This year, the show will be at Place des Terreaux, where visitors will be immersed in an Aztec tale: The Rabbit in the Moon.

  • Hypnotic show also announced on the facade of Saint-Jean cathedral.

    It will be a question of showing how the eye and its components interpret reality.

  • Place Bellecour, a giant wave will be made up of 350 kakemonos in spinnaker canvas.

    The structure will be 80 meters long and 20m high.

The fear of seeing a popular event completely transformed has been lifted.

The town hall of Lyon unveiled on Monday the outlines of the next Festival of Lights.

An edition that is both “grandiose and intimate”, in the words of Grégory Doucet, the mayor of the city.

The 2021 vintage will take the ingredients of the recipes that have guaranteed the success of previous years, but the majority in place will bring some more personal touches. 

20 Minutes

summarizes what awaits you from December 8 to 11.

Great shows

As we know, the Lyonnais have become demanding over the years.

An edition without a grandiose spectacle would already be considered a failure.

Some may still remember the fiasco of the 2004 edition, deemed too conceptual, which then cost the artistic director of the event her place.

This year, the show will be at Place des Terreaux, where visitors will be immersed in an Aztec tale: The Rabbit in the Moon.

It will be about the feathered serpent god Quetzalcoalt, who arrives on Earth and finds himself facing a rabbit, ready to sacrifice himself so that he can feed himself.

Touched, the god then promises to make him an eternal place in the moon so that men can admire and remember his sacrifice.

Hypnotic show also announced on the facade of Saint-Jean cathedral.

The name “Iris” is already setting the tone.

It will be a question of showing how the eye and its components interpret reality.

To do this, the AV Extended team has planned to play as much as possible with the rose window of the building transformed for the occasion into a pupil.

Poetic works

The Fourvière hill will not be left out, but this year, the organizers have decided to concentrate the show on a very small part of the site. No lasers projected on the basilica or on the 24 columns of the Assize Court, the lights will be concentrated on the apartment buildings between the bedside of the cathedral and the courthouse. To avoid the crowds of tourists along the banks of the Saône, the choice was made to focus on “still images” and no longer “a loop show”. Visitors will thus discover a phantasmagorical fresco made up of luminous drawings made on glass slides and projected 20 meters high.

Place Bellecour, expect to be overwhelmed by a tsunami. Or more precisely a giant wave made up of 350 kakemonos in spinnaker canvas. The structure will be 80 meters long and 20 m high. As night falls, hundreds of scales will rise, undulating under the breath of a light breeze. The objective: to give the impression to the spectators of being engulfed by this giant wave. But beware of the vagaries of the weather, frequent at this time of year, which could disrupt the performance of the show.

Flying fish perched in the trees on the banks of the Rhône will invite walkers to walk to the Tête d'Or park.

On site, three works.

The "creature of the lake", a sea serpent evolving in the middle of a field of luminous lotus will guide the walkers to the small wooden bridge near the kiosk, lit by strange swarms, fireflies or even butterflies.

Luminous nests, installed in the hollows of the trees, will subtly light up the undergrowth while arborescent plants will invite onlookers to go to the lake, whose waters will be disturbed by an intriguing spectacle of luminous ricochets.

The “candles of the heart”, for the benefit of the Gaelis association this year, will take place at Place des Jacobins, transformed for the occasion into a garden of light with groves and luminous flowers.

More contemplative works

A set of perspectives will be offered on the basin of the Place de la République, where 56 frames will be aligned and placed in two rows above the water in order to multiply the geometric shapes to infinity.

Place des Célestins will host a geodesic dome 8 m in diameter, while for the first time, walkers will be able to stroll along the Quai Romain Rolland under luminous poles inserted in the trees.

No major revolution on the side of the Place de la Bourse, which will present “Vortex-1”, swirling luminous rings.

Finally, a neon “phoenix” will land on Place Louis Pradel.

Attractions for the eccentric public

This is one of the novelties of this year, Blandan Park is included in the program.

The city wishing to make the event a party "up to children", specific activities are planned for families with staggered hours (6 pm to 10 pm).

There you will find a revisited funfair.

Trampoline, hopscotch, Power 4… Ten sound, light and interactive animations will be offered to visitors who will have the opportunity to compete in frenzied games.

"We are also going to reach audiences who cannot move around with the dissemination of works in augmented reality on virtual reality headsets," concludes Audrey Hénocque, the first assistant to the city of Lyon.

Lyon

Lyon: The next Festival of Lights will be "grandiose", promises the mayor

Justice

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  • Festival of Lights

  • Lyon

  • Spectacle

  • Culture