The Museum
Lantern Festival 2013
A signature event for CAM and now a beloved community tradition, CAM’s annual Lantern Festival celebration offers Chinese New Year fanfare with free entertainment and interactive cultural activities for people of diverse backgrounds and ages to enjoy.
Each year, Lantern Festival spotlights a Chinese American re-creation of a traditional village street fair featuring brilliant lantern displays, exciting musical, acrobatic and lion dance performances, enriching arts and crafts booths, and to cap off the evening,and to cap off the evening, a spirited glow-in-the-dark silver dragon stage performance to delight our senses! Event-goers can try their hand at lantern-making, Chinese-opera style face painting, kite-building, Chinese paper-cutting, Origami, Chinese calligraphy, string-knotting, and much more! New program features are added to the event each year to keep the festival fresh and exciting for new and returning visitors.
A hugely popular holiday in the Chinese culture, Lantern Festival occurs annually on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month to mark the closing of Chinese New Year festivities. As families wish for peace and prosperity for the coming year, colorful lanterns are hung in homes and throughout the streets to celebrate this jubilant occasion. CAM’s Lantern Festival series represents a departure from most other street event celebration because the primary focus is on education rather than just entertainment. The event’s program strives to present the visiting public with a unique and interactive opportunity to learn and appreciate the history, traditions and customs of this Chinese holiday.
CAM’s12th Annual Lantern Festival celebration will take place on Saturday, March 2, 2013, Noon-7 PM. Free admission!
Stage Performance Schedule
12 noon – Opening Ceremony
12:30 – Lion Dance & Kung fu
12:45 – Chinese Acrobats
1:00 – Magic Show
1:15 – Chinese Folk Dances
1:30 – Chinese Flute, Hula & Balancing Act
1:45 – God of Fortune
2:00 – Line Dances & Tai Chi Fan Dancing
2:15 – Wing Chun Martial Arts
2:30 – Changing Faces & Tea Pot Balancing Act
2:45 – Magic Show
3:00 – Ballroom Dancers
3:15 – Drums and Dancing
3:30 – Juggling
4:00 – Chinese Folk Dances
4:15 – Song and Dance
4:30 – Magic Show
4:45 – Martial Arts
5:00 – Chinese Folk Dances
5:15 – Variety Acts
5:30 – Lion Dance
Arts and Crafts Workshops
Lantern-making, kite-making, dragon puppet-making, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese paper-cutting, face painting, origami, abacus-making, red envelope-making, Chinese spring character-cutting, double-headed dancing serpent puppet-making, and much more.
Special Highlights
• Workshops inspired by CAM’s newest permanent exhibition: Origins – The Birth and Rise of the Chinese American Communities in Southern California
• Storytime with children’s book author, Year of the Snake, Oliver Chin
• Lucky Feast exhibition of a traditional Chinese New Year dinner table
• Lantern Festival merchandise for sale
L.A.’s Favorite Gourmet Food Trucks
• Kogi BBQ Taco Truck
• Ludo Truck (delicious chicken)
• Fluff Ice
Go Metro and receive a 10% discount* on Museum Store merchandise and memberships. For more details, click here.
Metro provides Bus and Rail transportation to the Museum till 2 AM on Fridays and Saturdays. For your best route or more info, visit the Metro Trip Planner or call (323) Go Metro or (323.466.3876).
*All CAM members will receive a 15% discount when purchasing Museum Store merchandise or memberships.
*Valid only on Lantern Festival Day and for in-store purchases only - Saturday, March 2, 2013.
