Lunar New Year Gala Celebrates Asian Culture at Trinity

By Nate Borchers

Sights, sounds and even smells of the Lunar New Year filled Laurie Auditorium on Friday night as 61 Trinity students danced, sang and showcased their talents in celebration of the holiday.

After being treated to Asian cuisine such as spring rolls, fried rice and satay, the audience filled Laurie Auditorium, some to see their roommates or friends perform, others to get a taste of the Lunar New Year celebration at Trinity.

“None of my family is of Asian heritage, but growing up in the Bay Area where there’s a huge Asian population, crowding China town in San Francisco to see the Lunar New Year Parade is just as much of a holiday for the rest of the population as it is for the Chinese, Vietnamese, etc.,” said Zachary Klein, a sophomore. “So in an odd way, attending tonight’s performance was kind of like going home.”

While students of Asian heritage only account for about 6% of Trinity’s student population, the celebration transcended cultural barrier as hundreds of students from diverse cultural backgrounds performed on stage or enjoyed the performances as the audience.

For Bria Woods, a senior Communication major of African-American descent, this was her first on-stage celebration of the Lunar New Year.

“I've always come to the shows during my years at Trinity, however this year I was fortunate enough to be able to help put on the celebration,” Woods said. “I am not of Asian descent, nor have I been exposed to traditional Asian culture growing up, so I was receptive to learning more about the culture and I'm glad I was able to immerse myself in cultural practices I've not experienced before.”

Woods was a part of two of eight performances Friday night, the first a hip-hop collaboration between the Chinese and Vietnamese student associations and the second a Korean Pop Throwback dance routine.

Many ethnic Asian students also took part on the stage, including Trinity's singing sensation Victor Vo, who has appeared in several other talent shows at Laurie Auditorium. He and Bob Le performed the Vietnamese song Vì Tôi Còn Sống.

Most of the performances were fully choreographed and performed by Trinity students, who spent about 30 days to plan, choreograph and rehearse the entire show.

The Lunar New Year celebration was organized by some of Trinity’s largest ethnic clubs, including the Vietnamese Student Association, Chinese Culture Club, and Korean Student Association. They have been hosting the Lunar New Year celebration for over a decade. While this year’s Lunar New Year, celebrating the Year of the Monkey, fell on February 8, the festivity still held as students put on a spectacle.

The Lunar New Year is based on the lunisolar calendar which charts time based on the movement of the sun and the moon. China, Vietnam, North & South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia are some of the countries that celebrate this holiday.

Correction: In an earlier version of the story, we included photos from last year's performance by mistake. We therefore took down those photos and want to apologize for the error.