Norwich — If you’re planning to partake in the annual city Winter Festival activities, check the calendar before heading downtown, as things have changed this year.

The Light Up City Hall ceremony, usually held on the day after Thanksgiving, has been moved to Friday, Dec. 1, this year to coincide with downtown First Friday arts and cultural activities. The annual Winter Fest parade, however, will be held this Saturday, with added features to mark the 30th anniversary of the mainstay holiday season event.

Singer Braiden Sunshine of Lyme, a star on The Voice talent show in 2015, will perform a rolling concert aboard the Norwich Public Utilities float for the entire parade route. And Winter Festival founder and former longtime festival committee Chairwoman Kathy Relyea will address the crowd at the viewing stand in Franklin Square.

The parade grand marshal will be Mayor Deberey Hinchey, who will leave office at the end of her term on Dec. 5, and her husband, Norwich attorney Lloyd Hinchey. They will ride in a convertible provided by parade sponsor Scranton Chevrolet in Norwich.

The NFA marching band and NFA and Griswold cheerleaders will march in the parade, and local antique car hobbyist Mark Goldblatt will have three of his antique convertibles in the parade.

The 1 p.m. parade, which will begin at Chelsea Parade and wind through downtown streets, is only one of several events in the city on Saturday. Festivities in the Chelsea Parade area begin at 9:30 a.m. at Norwich Free Academy, with registration for the fifth annual Reliance Health Inc. Winter Fest 5K and the FitKids Fun Run. Along with the races, there will be a costume contest, face painting, athletes’ massages and soup for the racers.

The Fun Run will start at 10:30 a.m. and registration is free for participants. The 5K, hosted by the Hartford Marathon Foundation, will begin at 11 a.m. Registration information is available at https://hartfordmarathon.com.

The parade will start at Chelsea Parade and proceed down Broadway, turn left onto Broad Street, continue along McKinley Avenue and Franklin Street, ending at Main Street. A food truck will be stationed at Chelsea Parade for early viewers and parade participants, Parade committee Chairman Alderman H. Tucker Braddock said.

Braddock said this year, there will be two emcees at different locations, calling out the highlights for parade viewers. The first stand will be at the corner of Broadway and Broad, a popular viewing spot. WICH-AM 1310 morning DJ Glenn O’Brien will serve as emcee.

A second viewing stand, where the three parade float judges will be stationed, will be at Franklin Square, the junction of Franklin and Main streets. Local DJ Clarence Neal will call the shots at that location.

c.bessette@theday.com