Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship, in partnership with Vermont Public.
All across the world, people are celebrating the start of the Lunar New Year and welcoming in the Year of the Fire Horse.
Lunar New Year, which falls on Feb. 17 this year, marks the beginning of the lunar calendar. The holiday is one of the most important celebrations in many East Asian and Southeast Asian countries and their diasporas. It’s a time to gather with family, reflect on the past year, and invite good fortune into the household for the year ahead.
On Saturday, Feb. 28, Addison County BIPOC+ will hold their third annual Lunar New Year celebration in partnership with Middlebury’s Town Hall Theater. The event is free and open to the public, and composed of both modern and traditional activities and performances.
Event co-organizers HaQuyen Pham and Natasha Chang are with the group Addison County BIPOC+. They both grew up celebrating Lunar New Year, and three years ago, they reached out to Town Hall Theater to ask about hosting a large community celebration.
“The response was overwhelmingly supportive,” Chang said. “It’s been taking off ever since then, and it’s been wonderful.”
Pham said that there have long been smaller and more informal Lunar New Year events around the area, but this event feels different.
“It’s pretty comprehensive and big,” Pham said. “And I feel like it’s reaching a bigger audience than those other events did.”
The Lunar New Year celebration will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Town Hall Theater in Middlebury. The event schedule includes lion dancers, a drumming group, interactive Tai Chi, mahjong, and Chinese calligraphy demonstrations, and more. Pham said she’s especially looking forward to a singalong version of the popular movie “KPop Demon Hunters.”
Pham and Chang said the event is designed to appeal to people and families who have been celebrating Lunar New Year for generations, as well as for those who are brand new to the holiday.
“We don’t have a very concentrated East Asian, Southeast Asian, or any other population in one area [in Vermont],” Pham said. “Natasha and I are intentionally making this event as broad and participatory as possible. It’s really meeting people where they are, and also providing a space for people to bring their traditions to share.”
The Addison County BIPOC+ and Town Hall Theater Lunar New Year Celebration will take place on Saturday, Feb. 28 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Town Hall Theater in Middlebury. It is free and open to the public.