Road closures as giant puppet show takes to streets of Weymouth

The festival draws to an end this weekend with a European twist; a French puppet troupe taking over the streets of Weymouth.

The free-to-attend event will take place in the evenings of Friday, September 22 and Saturday, September 23 from 8.00pm as well as an afternoon performance on the Saturday at 12.00pm.  This year will include a performance from French company Transe Express and its parade show Poupées Géantes, or in English, giant dolls.

The French puppet group will start their mesmerising light show at New Bond Street, before passing along an 800m route and finishing at Brewers Quay. The display will also be wheelchair accessible with a viewing point.

Weymouth is the only performance that the puppet group will perform in the UK, having also appeared at venues across Europe this year.

Thousands are already expected to turn out for the magical display and line the streets, with three giant dolls singing and gliding magically through the town centre, turning Weymouth into its own opera house and performing classical scores from Bizet, Mozart and Verdi.

The puppets will be encompassed by a band of drumming toy soldiers, known as Les Tambours, who will provide the rhythmic backing to the puppets.

The event, sponsored by We Are Weymouth, in partnership with Active Performing Arts has already brought the likes of Dundu and Worldbeaters to Weymouth in 2021, before Peixos the giant fish made its way through the town centre in 2022.

A spokesperson for the event described what you can expect from the puppets in the performance, “Their dresses are adorned with patterns inspired by artists Matisse, Cézanne and Vasarely. The dolls’ operatic voices transform the street into an opera house and you’ll be enthralled by a mix of popular songs and opera arias.”

Puppets and art-work created over summer workshops with Activate will be displayed in shops throughout the town to bring the community together in the build-up to Poupées Géantes.

Due to the event taking over the streets, there are a number of temporary road closures in place between the hours of 7.00pm and 9.30pm on both dates. The roads will also be closed between 11.00am and 1.30pm on the Saturday for the afternoon performance.

St Thomas street will be closed from its junction with School Street to its junction with Trinity Road.

St Nicholas Street will be closed at the pedestrianised area.

Lower St Alban Street will be closed between its junctions with St Nicholas Street and St Thomas Street.

Bond Street will be closed between its junctions with St Thomas Street and St Marys Street.

St Edmund Street will be closed between its junctions with St Thomas Street and St Mary Street.

Lower St Edmund Street will be closed between its junctions with St Thomas Street and St Nicholas Street.

North Quay will be closed between its junctions with the Council Offices car park and the Town Bridge.

Cove Street between its junctions with Cove Row and Hope Street.

New Bond Street, Trinity Road and Trinity Street will be closed in its entirety for the parades.

The one way system on Spring Road will be revoked between its junctions with Hope Street and Horsford Street. A temporary two-way traffic flow will be put in place for the access of emergency services, the RNLI and residents.