All posts tagged with: fireworks

After three nights of competition where Viet Nam, Brazil and Italy each competed for top honours, it was clear on the final night that Italy would take home the top prize in the 2012 Honda Celebration of Light fireworks competition in English Bay, in downtown Vancouver.

“Italy deserved the win” said Patrick Brault, Honda Celebration of Light producer, “the choreography and their use of color was simply spectacular.  The judges and the public had a hard time deciding the winner because it was so close but in the end it was a few points and a few extra public votes that made the difference.”

It was the first year in the 22-year event history that the public was able to go online and vote.

The 3-night event attracted over 1-million spectators, many of which came to enjoy the daytime SHOREfest music series at Sunset Beach and English Bay.

“We estimated about 400,000 people on site Saturday night to watch Italy’s show,” said Andrea Dowd-Dever, Producer of the 2012 Honda Celebration of Light, “It is wonderful to see so many people enjoying this amazing event and we are already planning an even bigger event for 2013.”

The 2012 Honda Celebration of Light kicked off on Saturday, July 28 with the first of three nights of firework presentations. The Celebration of Light is the largest offshore fireworks competition in the world, attracting up to 400,000 spectators along the shores of English Bay each evening.

The first night of fireworks on Saturday, July 28, saw Vietnam perform in it’s first international competition outside of their home country. Up next is Brazil on Wednesday, August 1, and Italy wrapping up the even on Saturday, August 4.

All of the firework shows are free to attend. The fireworks start at 10:00pm and lasts for 25 minutes. For visitors outside of downtown it is recommended to take public transit. Shore 104.3 FM will simulcast the soundtrack for the fireworks show.

Photo Credit: Brian Webb

The flashes and booms over English Bay followed by ‘ooohs’ and ‘aahs”will fill the air of Vancouver as the Celebration of Light takes off for another year. This year’s “Battle Of Champions” edition kicked off Saturday July 30 with China, followed by Spain on Wednesday August 3 and Canada on Saturday August 6.

In addition to the excitement of the spectacular fireworks, Shorefest, returns for a third year. This music festival features three stages; English Bay, Kits Beach and Vanier Park. Kits and Vanier Park stages are free for all to enjoy with the English Bay stage by-invitation-only performances.

This year’s performers include: former Barenaked Ladies frontman Steven Page, Wide Mouth Mason, Jim Byrnes, Jeremy Fisher, Leeroy Stagger, Grapes of Wrath’s Kevin Kane and The Sojourners.

Performances begin at 7:00pm each night of the Celebration of Light. Head down early and get your seat, and enjoy an unique specactle each evening.

Listen to the simulcast music on Shore 104.3 FM.

Photo Credit: Brian Webb

[slideshow] From July 21 – July 31, 2010, Vancouver hosted the 20th Celebration of Light festival in English Bay. It’s a pyro-musical fireworks competition attracting the worlds leading fireworks designers. The event is free for spectators. The fireworks are simulcast on local radio beginning at 10:00pm sharp. There are an annual estimated 1.4 million people who come to watch the event.

On Wednesday, July 21, 2010, Rozzi Inc. represented the United States. The performance was spectacular. I was fortunate to have front-row seats to capture these stunning fireworks images.

Thursday, July 1 people across Canada came together to celebrate our national holiday, Canada Day. I proudly sported my Team Canada Olympic jersey, Canada flags and a Canada flag temporary tattoo to show my passion for Canada.

My friend Jay and I spend the day at Canada Place, the gateway to Canada from the Pacific, located on Burrard Inlet in downtown Vancouver. It is home to the Pan Pacific Hotel, the cruise ship terminal, IMAX Theatre, the Vancouver Convention Centre, and the Port of Vancouver and Canada Place Corp corporate offices.

There were many activities including live musical performances, street performers, and demonstrations by the Canadian Armed Forces and Navy.

At 12:00pm, noon, the heritage horns rang out and the crowd proudly belted out, O’ Canada.

The highlight for many was to see the Vancouver 2010 Olympic cauldron re-lit. The cauldron has been under construction since the close of the Paralympics so a permanent structure could surround the massive art sculpture. The base of the cauldron is now surrounded by a pond.

In the evening I had the pleasure to watch the fireworks from the Helijet landing pad, located on the east side of Canada Place.

Although the weather was cool and threatened to rain, it was a very enjoyable day.