This past Sunday has come and gone, and so has the year of the dog. People across the world celebrated the Lunar New Year and the arrival of the Year of the Pig on Feb. 18. On campus, the official Lunar New Year Celebration took place the prior evening in the MPR.
The holiday is observed by many Asian nations, which is reflected in the event sponsors: Chinese Culture Club (CCC), Taiwanese Cultural Society (TCS), Lac Viet, Singapore Society, Hong Kongers, Chinese House, Asian/Asian American House (AAA) and Korean Students Association (KSA). Faculty from the East Asian Studies program also contributed toward advertising and funding. However the planning and execution of the event was entirely student-run.
The festivities – emceed by Hansel Tan ’10, Roberta Wong ’08, and Dave Woo ’08 – boasted a variety of activities. The program began with martial arts demonstrations of Chinese Wushu fighting style by David Moench ’09, and Jason Kim ’07 exhibited a Korean taekwondo dance set to classical music in front of the packed house in the MPR.
A performance by members of the Wes Korean Drumming Ensemble followed, in addition to a slide show and commentary of the traditional clothing of the nations of the representative student groups. Afterwards, a capella group The Mixolydians sang, and the night wrapped up with a trivia show to test the audience members’ knowledge of the Lunar New Year. In between activities, attendees helped themselves to a buffet table of traditional East Asian food.
The celebration was certainly a success: it was estimated that over 100 people showed up, and the MPR and surrounding hall were swarming for the duration of the event.
Though the Lunar New Year Celebration was initially created for observing Asian students on campus, the event was also geared toward people without knowledge of the holiday and its customs. Students who came looking to gain some cultural literacy – or simply to fill their bellies with homemade delicacies – said they felt unconditionally welcomed at the festivities and had a rare chance to witness unfamiliar traditions.
“I found the taekwondo the most interesting because of how it was coordinated with the music,” said Thomas Slomann, a graduate student.
Annalee Pratt ’08 described the taekwondo performance as “delicious.”
“I loved how [it] brought together two different cultures to create a beautifully synchronized piece of Asian athletics and European classical music,” she said.
The on-campus activities varied considerably from traditional New Year celebrations. Chinese House Manager Mark Sun ’09 said that they are typically more of a family affair.
“Often, mothers cook for a week non-stop,” Sun said. “It’s really a continuous celebration of family. You’re supposed to relax and avoid doing chores of any kind.”
“[It is also an] expression of filial respect from children to elders, and monetary gifts from elders to children in return,” said Ana Chiu ’09, one of the coordinators of the Saturday event.
In order to carry out a Lunar New Year event for the campus – a setting with a total absence of family togetherness – the organization had to be quite different.
“Our [celebration] was targeted towards accommodating traditions from all representative nations, and toward spreading knowledge of said traditions to attendants who might not have had experience with them,” Chiu said.
The consensus among organizers is that the level of involvement and attendance peaked with this year’s event, a difference evident in the reactions non-observing students like Pratt walked away with.
“I had a great time, felt completely welcomed, and would definitely come back next year,” she said.
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