(This story has been corrected since it was first posted.)

After 25 years of illuminating the night and haunting shadows from Grandview Park to Trout Lake, Public Dreams is looking to become a little more private.

Public Dreams is known for annual events such as the Illuminares lantern festival and the Parade of Lost Souls, but without a significant increase in funds the company may not survive this year, general manager Laura Grieco said.

“To get us through the next six months, we really need financial support,” she said.

Grieco said Public Dreams has never done a fundraising push before, but the organization is planning to start one Sept. 24 at the Parade of Lost Souls fundraiser. The celebration is scheduled to feature an Afro-Brazilian percussion troupe, art installations and a host of eclectic performers at the Storyeum on Cordova Street.

Grieco said if the fundraiser is not a success, the company could be in danger of going under within a few months.

“Are we going to pull a Ballet B.C.?” she asked, referring to the professional dance company that ran into dire financial trouble a couple of years ago when it teetered on the brink of bankruptcy.

Grieco took over as general manager a month ago, after the company had been without a leader since February of this year.

“We’re trying to be fully self-sustained,” she said.

She acknowledged a fear of corporate sponsorship among many supporters of Public Dreams who don’t want the company to go the route of Vancouver’s annual summer fireworks competition.

Grieco said the organization needs a corporate sponsor with similar values to the company and one that wouldn’t compromise the integrity of the artists.

She said Public Dreams is in talks with Vancity about corporate sponsorship, but discussions are in the preliminary stages.

Public Dreams has regularly worked with several sponsors, including Whole Foods, but Grieco said the company needs cash sponsors.

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