Year of the Water Tiger: Canberra celebrates Lunar New Year
Posted on
A meaningful (and colourful!) cultural celebration, Lunar New Year celebrations are due to kick off in Canberra from this week to usher in the Year of the Water Tiger.
First up, Dickson’s Woolley Street will come to life from this Thursday 27 January with a “COVID-safe kaleidoscope of colour, sound, tastes and aromas” that will continue across three long weekends, from 27–31 January, 3–5 February and 10–12 February.
Encompassing musical and dance performances, martial arts displays and workshops against the backdrop of Woolley Street’s vibrant restaurant scene, this outdoor festival will be family-friendly and open to all Canberrans. Those who want to catch live entertainment should aim to visit between 6 and 8 pm on those days, with some Saturday performances during the day.
Entertainment includes music from the ANU Chinese Classical Music Ensemble, Kim Yang, Ding Guili and Lucy Sugerman and live performances from Project Beats and Red Cedar Traditional Chinese Dance, Canberra Dragon Dance (pictured above), Fire Dragon Australia and Subsdance presents the Zodiac Story.
View this post on Instagram
“Holding the celebration over multiple weekends as a distributed event rather than one big street festival maximises Covid-safety as well as benefits to local businesses and the community,” says Chief Minister Andrew Barr MLA. You can find the full program, at act.gov.au/cityrenewal/places/dickson/lunar-new-year.
While there will be plenty of opportunities to sample delicious food from a wide variety of nations in Dickson, if you’re looking for something special Narrabundah’s XO will offer a special Chinese New Year menu from 1–19 February.
View this post on Instagram
Their traditional Chinese New Year menu features eight dishes with highlights including Mapo Tofu Dumplings with pork, tofu and fermented chilli dressing, Barramundi with kombu soy, cherry tomatoes and coriander and a dessert of steamed pandan cake with sea coconut jelly. lime sorbet and kaya curd for $88 per person. Book your seat here.
Ginseng at Woden’s Hellenic Club will also host performances from Canberra Prosperous Mountain Dragon and Lion Dance on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 February during their Yum Cha sittings and honestly, we can’t think of a better way to spend a weekend. Find out more via Facebook.
Feature image: Canberra Dragon Dance via facebook.com/canberradragondance
