WS Chronicle

The Tanglewood Festival of Lights is planning to add an animated carousel display and a 13-foot Moravian star this year.

The Festival of Lights is a massive annual holiday event held at Tanglewood Park that drew 294,000 attendees last year and made $340,000 in profit. The festival started in 1992 with displays bought with a Z. Smith Reynolds grant. For the past decade, Forsyth County Parks and Recreation has been replacing displays, and has replaced roughly half of the show’s 72 large displays. Parks and Recreation Director Mike Anderson said new displays are a big draw for regulars of the show.

“The number one question we get every year is, “What’s new?’” said Anderson.

Next month, Forsyth County commissioners will vote on a $54,153 contract with Raleigh-based Mosca Design, Inc. for this year’s new displays and any technical support associated with them.

Due to the specialized nature of the massive computerized displays, there are limited companies that offer them, so Mosca was the only bidder.

Anderson said that animated light displays like the new carousel have been popular and that the smaller Moravian star in the festival was well-worn, so they opted for a larger one.

The Festival of Lights this year runs from Nov. 16 through Jan. 1. Now in its 27th year, the nearly five-mile route for the festival is one of the largest light shows in the Southeast. Most attendees ride through in automobiles, but horse drawn carriage rides are also available. Along with lights, the festival also has a Holiday Gift Village with a variety of vendors and appearances by Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus.