'By popular demand,' Montreal to hold 2nd Jacques Cartier Bridge light show
1st show was partially interrupted by protesting police officers, which didn't go over well with Denis Coderre
If your viewing experience of the highly anticipated (or much maligned, depending on your perspective) lighting of the Jacques Cartier Bridge was ruined by a noisy protest, fear not, for you will have a chance to watch it again, presumably in peace.
Take two of the light show is scheduled for Sunday, June 25, just over a month after Montreal police officers crashed the first event.
But anews release announcing the display mentions nothing of the police protest, pointing insteadto the first show's popularity as the reason for the second go.
The organizing committee of the anniversary celebrations refusedto divulge how much either showwill cost.
According to the federal bridge corporation, about 400,000 people set up camp somewhere near the bridge to watch the spectacle last month; another 1.8 million watched on television or online.
Butthousands of protesting Montreal police officers marchedto the Old Port that night and held a noisy protest where thelarge crowd had gathered to watch.
According to photos posted on social media,the union projected its logo on one of the bridge's pillars as the illumination spectaclebegan.
The officers' collectiveagreement expired in2014.
Mayor Denis Coderre wasn't impressed with the police union's decision to disrupt the event, which isone of the city's highest profile anniversary projects. It costan estimated$39.5 million to install the lights on the bridge and maintain them for the next 10 years.
"People have the right to protest, but they have to do so in a way that respectsMontrealers," he said the following day, when he announced that there would be a second show.
Take two: the details
The 30-minute showwill start at 10:30 p.m. andfeature musical accompaniment by the Orchestre Mtropolitain, conducted by Yannick Nzet-Sguinand featuring about a dozen performers.
The soundtrack will be broadcast on Rouge FM.
Some suggested places to catch the show includeNotre-Dame Street, east of the bridge, along the riverbank on the South Shore, including Marie-Victorin Park in Longueuil, and of course, theOld Port.
No word yet on whether the police plan to crash for a second time.