PREPARATIONS for this year's Bright Autumn Festival are well and truly underway with a wide range of activities and community events on this year's docket.
The festival is set to provide a platform for at least 20 events to be put on by local community groups and volunteers, such as: the Wandi Nut Festival, Bright Singers and Alpine Actors performances, local historical walking tours, 'Bright's Got Talent' and many more.
Gala Day this year is scheduled for Saturday, 3 May, with the Gala Day Parade to transform Ireland Street into a thoroughfare for a fleet of fantastic floats once again.
"This year's Gala Parade theme is movies from the 1980s, which will give people a lot of scope and some great ideas to create a unique float," president of the Bright Autumn Festival, Brendan Holland said.
"The brass band is already practising arrangements of the 'Ghostbusters' and 'Indiana Jones' themes to go with the parade.
"We're hoping to reintroduce QR codes this year so people can vote for their favourite float and open garden displays in town.
"We've got our fingers crossed we'll get a nice autumn; there seem to be plenty of trees with some good colours already.
"The Bright Art Gallery will have an increase of opening times during the festival and clubs like the croquet club will host an open day for anyone to attend.
"The Bright and District Historical Society also puts on a number of tours based on different themes: the 'gold rush', 'murder mystery' tours and the 'old quartz-crushing battery' museum programs have always been really popular."
Opening night for the festival will be held at Howitt Park, at 4pm on Friday, 25 April.
It is planned as a family-oriented evening with face-painting, live music and a lot of other festive celebrations.
After over a week of events to celebrate Bright's beautiful autumn colours and produce from the region, the final day of the festival on Sunday, 4 May, will see Freeburgh host it's annual bush market.
For more information and to view the program for this year, visit: www.brightautumnfestival.org.au and check in with the Bright Autumn Festival Facebook page for any last-minute changes and updates.
