Crowd left disappointed after annual tree lighting ceremony in Ontario goes awry

A jolly crowd poured into downtown Orillia, Ont. on Friday to bask in the magic of the city's annual tree lighting ceremony — however, that festive spirit was quickly squashed once the tree was lit in the most underwhelming fashion. 

Many people in Orillia left disappointment after watching the Christmas tree light up in Orillia on Friday.
Video Credit: Joel Redmond pic.twitter.com/tELzKcOsJS

— Muskoka411 News (@Muskoka411) November 19, 2023

As the crowd passionately counts down from 10, a bare Christmas tree is revealed with only its trunk wrapped in lights, leading to audible groans and boos from both parents and children. 

This is a meme waiting to happen.

— Ben Perrin (@profbenperrin) November 19, 2023

"All that for that, eh?" one person says as most of the crowd stares at the underwhelming tree with confusion. 

Charlie Brown was in charge.

— Your Ole Pal Datagod (@datagod) November 20, 2023

Despite its disappointing appearance, it looks like the aging tree was dressed down for the occasion with its health in mind, as its droopy branches have made it next to impossible to hold up heavy Christmas lights. 

However, this wasn't enough to stop folks on social media from sharing their hilarious interpretations of why the Christmas tree was stripped of its signature lights this year. 

Inflation even got the tree

— Awais (@AwaisBinAzhar7) November 20, 2023

"Due to cutbacks and energy-saving protocols, this year's Christmas tree was limited to only one string of lights," one person wrote. 

Fuck I’m laughing so hard right now lol

— Justin Zaine (@ToolHead152) November 20, 2023

"Why did they even have a tree lighting ceremony if they didn't even decorate the tree?" another person asked. 

That crowd reaction is pretty epic.. haha.

— Kristopher Snarby (@KSnarb) November 20, 2023

Despite the underwhelming reveal, the event also featured a market featuring local vendors, Christmas carol sing-offs, meetings with Santa, and lots of free hot chocolate to put everyone in the festive spirit.

blogTO reached out to the City of Orillia for comment on the tree lighting ceremony but did not receive a response in time for this article's publication.