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A guide to Port Jeff’s 2019 Charles Dickens Festival

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The Village of Port Jefferson will be dressed to the nines in their finest Victorian dress to celebrate the 24th anniversary of the Charles Dickens Festival.

The fest happens the second weekend of December where over 25,000 visitors are expected to celebrate the Port Jeff tradition starting on Saturday, Dec. 7 until Sunday, Dec. 8. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both days.

This year there will be more to see and do than ever before, says event organizers.

“Each year the production team at the Greater Port Jefferson-Northern Brookhaven Arts Council sifts through a virtual potpourri of ideas fashioned to make each Dickens Festival more spectacular than the previous year’s offering,” said Allan Varela, chair of the arts council.

He added that new and exciting additions are joining the typical favorite traditions.

“This year will feature a show-stopping presentation of the new giant puppets appearing in the grand closing Pickwick’s Puppet Parade,” he said. “These creations will present an unforgettable spectral spectacle that will thrill both the young and young at heart. The new puppets will join the long list of cherished events around the Village that make each year’s Festival a family favorite.”

Along with the costumes and performances from over 130 Dickens’ street Ccracters throughout the weekend, there is something for everybody.

Oliver Twist’s Artisan Square, located in the parking lot by the intersection of Main Street and East and West Broadway, will feature skilled craftspeople demonstrating how handcrafted works were made during Victorian England, and the Harbor Master’s building on West Broadway will be the home of Tiny Tim’s Train Station (a spot for Toys-for-Tots donations). 

Visitors can enjoy Mrs. Cratchet’s Holiday Cookies & Crafts event that features a wide variety of small craft and cookie kits available for purchase and of course, visiting Santa’s Workshop is a “must-see” on the corner of Barnum and West Broadway.

Among the horse and carriage rides throughout the village, churches will be alive with different musical presentations and the Harbor Ballet will offer performances of the Nutcracker.

But if you can’t make it to the festival, there’s still plenty to see. The Festival of Trees will show off 20 Christmas trees lavishly decorated will sparkle and shine throughout the whole month of December at the Port Jeff Village Center at 101 East Broadway.

Make sure to check back at GreaterPortJeff to see our photo coverage.

Last year’s photo coverage is below.

2018 photos

Top: Scene from last year’s Charles Dickens Fest in Port Jeff (file photo).

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