The Huntington to celebrate Chinese New Year

Visitors can experience the beauty of Chinese music, dance, and culture at a Chinese New Year festival on Saturday, Feb. 20, at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.

Ushering in the Year of the Tiger, the festival gets under way at 10:30 a.m. with an exuberant performance by lion dancers and drummers near the entrance pavilion. Other activities will include Chinese opera, shadow puppet theater, mask-changing performances, children’s book readings, Chinese painting and calligraphy demonstrations, and musical performances. Visitors can also purchase freshly cut flowers—a traditional way to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Activities will be ongoing until 4 p.m.

The Huntington’s Chinese garden will be one of the focal points of the festival. Inspired by the traditional scholar’s gardens of Suzhou, China, this breathtaking landscape features a large lake, a complex of tile-roofed pavilions, stone bridges, and native Chinese plants set against a backdrop of oaks, redwoods, and pines. The second phase of garden construction is currently in development, and visitors can see a scale model and hear about plans for this next stage at an information tent near the garden entrance.

SCHEDULE OF FESTIVAL ACTIVITIES:

Lion dancers
10:30 a.m. – Entrance Pavilion
11:30 a.m. – Chinese Garden
2 p.m. – Library Lawn

Brush painting demonstrations
10:30 a.m.–3 p.m.
Brown Garden

Shadow-puppet theater
11 a.m.
Friends’ Hall

String & Bamboo Orchestra
11 a.m.–1 p.m.
Chinese Garden

Flower arranging demonstrations
11 a.m. & 2 p.m.
Chinese Garden

Calligraphy demonstrations
11:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.
Brown Garden

Children’s book reading/signing:
Oliver Chin, Year of the Tiger
12–1 p.m.
Botanical Center,
Ahmanson Classroom

Mask-changing performances
12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m.
Friends’ Hall

Tai chi demonstrations
12:30 p.m., 3 p.m.
North Vista

Chinese knotting demonstrations
1–4 p.m.
Brown Garden

UCLA Chinese Music Ensemble
2–4 p.m.
Chinese Garden

Readings/booksignings:
Adeline Yen Mah,
China: Land of Dragons & Emperors
and Ann Mah,
Kitchen Chinese

2:30 p.m.
Botanical Center,
Ahmanson Classroom
Chinese Kwun Opera Society
performing“A Stroll in the Garden”
from The Peony Pavilion

3:30 p.m.
Friends’ Hall
Flower market
All day – Parking lot area

Penjing (miniature trees & rockery) displays
All day – Chinese Garden

Information tent: Chinese Garden project, phase 2
All Day – Brown Garden

Children’s scavenger hunt
10:30 a.m.­­–3 p.m.
Entrance Pavilion


All festival activities are included with general admission to The Huntington: $20 adults, $15 seniors, $10 students (age 12-18), $6 youth (age 5-11), and free for children under 5. The group rate is $14 per person for groups of 15 or more. Members are admitted free. For additional information call (626) 405-2100 or visit www.huntington.org.

East West Bank is the sole corporate sponsor of the event.

ABOUT THE HUNTINGTON: The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is a collections-based research and educational institution serving scholars and the general public. More information can be found on the Web at www.huntington.org.