(Originally published in Buffalo News NeXt in March 2018)
In America, a big celebration is held for January 1st - the day that begins the new year. But in China, they celebrate their own new year.
Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival or the start of the New Lunar Year, is a festival that happens usually in the month of February, this year being February 16th. Celebrations start the night before and last throughout the day. It’s typical to hear the pop of firecrackers whizzing through the air, the mouthwatering aroma of dumplings and the spreading of red envelopes, often from parent to child. These red envelopes are called “hong bao”, meaning red pouch when directly translated. They contain a certain amount of money and often a message proposing a healthy and fortunate start to a new year.
During Chinese New Year, most doors would adorn a red square cloth with golden characters written. This was called a “fai chun”, which was a traditional decoration used to help convey happiness and prosperity in the coming lunar year. This is a few of the many traditions used to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
Another tradition of the Chinese New Year is their huge celebration. It is broadcasted on television globally, and for good reason - there are thousands of traditional Chinese dances, talented singers with their own dance sequence and “xiang sheng”, which is a kind of Chinese comedy used very frequently.
Although a celebration of that scale is hard to replicate, the Chinese Club of Western New York (CCWNY) has tried, and done a good job of doing it, for the past years. Located at the UB Center of Arts building, this celebration has been our version of celebrating. In fact, in many ways some think it is better.
Emily Sheng, former president of CCWNY, believed it to be better than the original celebration in a way because not only did it celebrate the Lunar New Year and traditional Chinese culture, it also shared it with others. She said, “We put on a big show every year that’s not just for the Chinese community, but also for any community who loves Chinese culture.”
And indeed, it is a big show - in fact it is a celebration just as grand as the one in China - the only thing it lacks is some of the overwhelming propaganda.
The Chinese New Year performance usually lasts around two hours long. Performers practice months before - usually rehearsals start in the mid to late summer time. Dancers practice formations all the way up to exiting the stage. The chorus gets together at least once a week with the piano. After all, it is the biggest event of the year.
Backstage, performers get ready - they change and powder on makeup while engaging in conversation with their friends. Sometimes they go out and get food from the Student Union since the performance is located on the UB campus. They get ready a few numbers before their act and once they are done, a great round of applause awaits them with several hoots and whistles.
At the end of the performance, the announcers welcome children up to the stage as they pass out hong bao, containing one dollar in each pouch. Children jump out of their seats as the announcers wave the hong bao - needless to say, this is one of the most beloved traditions of the Chinese New Year.
Most years there is a banquet that follows - last year it was at the Congregation Shir Shalom and Eastern Pearl catered to the event. The banquet that follows the performance is also considered a part of tradition. There are many round tables in a single room and at the front is a stage that people would go up on and engage in xiang sheng. There would be raffles and games on the stage as well, including both adults and children. All the while people watch at the tables below, eating their food while socializing with their friends and family.
Although the actual performances lasts about two hours, the celebration lasts a day, and the festive spirit lasts the whole year.
The Chinese Club of Western New York (CCWNY) is the mastermind behind this recreation. They are a non-profit organization whose main goal is to bring Chinese culture from China and spread it to the United States one step at a time. Right now, they have reached all of Western New York (Buffalo) and some parts of Ohio as well.
Their officers are primarily professionals and/or small business owners. They are usually the ones to sponsor the event although Confucius Institute is a major sponsor as well.
They even have a smaller branch - the Chinese Youth Club (CYC) - for the children and teenagers. The CYC officers arrange smaller events, often for the little kids. For an example, they set up the Easter Egg Hunt, Halloween festivities and sometimes trivia nights. Each event ensures that the children of CCWNY have as much fun as possible. They also help the CCWNY officers with setting up the Chinese New Year performance and the like.
The hardest part of the performance process is, to Mrs. Emily Shen, “... we only have a certain amount of spots. We had to pick and choose, we had to let some people disappointed - and we didn’t want to!” There is also the process of having to reserve the stage in which the show was to take place on, getting everything organized and making sure everything was foolproof… there was a lot of effort that went into this performance.
However, in order for something that great to happen, there will always be cons - that’s something that’s bound to happen. However there are pros too. A lot of them.
In the end, she said,“...the round of applause, the children laughing… that’s actually rewarding.” Not to mention the successful enlightenment of Chinese culture; that’s plenty rewarding to me too.