Chinese Lunar New Year

Lunar New Year Celebration
Friday, February 05, 2010- The United Asian Coalition hosted the first Chinese Lunar New Year event in the Granite State Room to promote diversity with customary Chinese entertainment, music and food.
The Lunar New Year was celebrated in the Granite State Room by students, faculty and UNH community members who attentively listened to music played by Boston Chinese Dulcimer Ensemble, gazed in amazement at a lion dance performance from the Soaring Could Lion Dance Association from Boston, MA, and filled their plates with the food catered by Mei Wei of Durham, NH and Wing’s Kitchen of Boston, MA.
The success of the event came as a surprise to most.
“The advertisement was so short notice and we just got it approved by the SAFC.” Said Brook Yee, Junior and UAC Secretary, “I didn’t think this many people would come.”
With all the tickets sold out to the event, UAC Event Coordinator Alex Lamothe was please that nothing went wrong when the event was planned only two months in advance.
“It’s great we can bring a piece of Asian culture to the UNH campus.” Said Lamothe.
The only trouble that slowed the event down was the projection display of the PowerPoint presentation of the fifteen days of the Chinese Lunar Celebration. The attendants of the Lunar New Year event were quizzed on the Lunar New Year history and rewarded with their place in the buffet line if they answered three questions correctly.
The two main activities of the evening were the tranquil dulcimer performance by the Boston Chinese Dulcimer Ensemble and the energetic dragon dance performed by Dang Van from the Soaring Could Lion Dance Association.
Dulcimers are a stringed instrument that is hammered by small mallets that sits similar to a piano yet there are no keys. Scientists and historians are not sure of the origin of the instrument, but they have become a symbol for Chinese heritage for nearly 2000 years.
“It was a great performance by both groups. I don’t know which was better.” Said Yee.
Lion dance is performed by two people, not to be confused with the Chinese Dragon Dance performed by 20 to 25 people under on dragon costume. Dang Van members circled around a bowl of lettuce and oranges that they eventually scooped up with their lion mouths and kicked at the crowd while they shifted to the tempo of the Chinese drum and cymbals. The ceremony is suppose to protect the people from evil spirits like the monster Nian: a mystical creature the lunar New Year is based on.
“When I heard UNH wanted a show, I was surprised.” Said Phillip Pham, a member of Dang Van for two years and has been participating in dragon dance ensembles for seven years.
Pham viewed the event as a “shocking” because he did not believe there was a significant Asian demographic on campus to host the event. Though otherwise thought, Asian student enrollment is UNH campus’ largest minority demographic in 2008 with 2.6 percent, according to the UNH Diversity Progress Report 2008.
Bringing in the first of fifteen days of traditional Chinese celebration with the exceptional display of elegance by the UAC Lunar New Year event performers, The New Year of the Tiger is looking bright.