By Celia Bernhardt | cbernhardt@queensledger.com
Hundreds of Glendale residents and visitors filled the square in the Shops at Atlas Park on Saturday evening for a Christmas tree lighting and holiday festivities.
The night began with a crowd-wide countdown to the official tree lighting—after a few seconds of technical faltering, the large evergreen was lit up from top to bottom with brilliant lights and ornaments.
Kids pose for a picture in front of the tree. Photo credit: Celia Bernhardt
Multiple local youth dance groups performed for the crowd, including the Queens Dance Academy and KTB Dance Studio. Also featured was a bubble show, a DJ, and a visit from Santa.
KTB dancers of all ages perform for the crowd. Photo credit: Celia Bernhardt
Lavinia Bopp, a 44-year-old Glendale resident and mother to a KTB dancer, said her daughter has danced at this Christmas event annually for years.
“I come here every year because my daughter dances every year,” she explained. “I think they’ve been preparing since October.” Bopp said that a local recital like this one was a good opportunity for the dancers to perform for their local friends when they might usually only perform at competitions.
Bopp said she loved the tree lighting. “It’s not quite like Rockefeller, but us being in a small area, it’s very nice to not go into the city to do something like this. It’s a smaller thing,” she said. “It’s a nice occasion.”
Photo credit: Celia Bernhardt
