Distillery District lights up annual Christmas Market

One flick of a switch and 'tis the season the Toronto Christmas Market opened for another year on Friday evening with the lighting of its 16.5-metre centrepiece.

More than 18,000 lights lit up the Christmas tree at the launch of the annual holiday festival at Toronto'sDistillery District.

• Meet the woman who designs Toronto's Christmas Market
• Large weekend crowds prompt Toronto Christmas Market to charge $5 fee

Organizers have planned 320 performances for the market's main stage over 28 days.

The festival will run from Nov. 20 to Dec. 20.

The opening night event was headlined by singer Francesco Yates. Next weekend willfeature Dee Snider, frontman of the heavy metal band Twisted Sister.

"The reason why people love this place is because when they come here, they rediscover the magic of Christmas and feel about Christmas the way they once did as children," said Mathew Rosenblatt, the event's executive producer.

Beth Edney, who designs the Christmas Market each year, told CBC's Metro Morning that the Distillery District itself is at the heart of her inspiration.

"I like to make it very classic," said Edney. "I want to make it an Old World experience because of the buildings and that backdrop, and it's lit up, it's illuminated everywhere and it makes people happy."

This is the sixth year for the market but, for the first time, the event will be charging a $5 fee on weekends.

Some of the proceedswill go toward charities the market supports, including the Daily Bread Food Bank, Plan Canadaand the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund. The rest will be reinvested in the market, according to Rosenblatt.