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To celebrate the Spring Lantern Festival, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) held the New Territories West Lunar New Year Lantern Carnival tonight (February 4) at Tsuen Wan Sha Tsui Road Playground, launching a series of lantern carnivals.
The Carnival featured festive lantern installations and a range of entertainment. Programme highlights included spectacular folk songs and dances, distinctive xöömei throat singing and matouqin instrumental performances by the National Song and Dance Troupe of Inner Mongolia Hing'a. Other programmes such as Chinese folk craft demonstrations, Chinese instrumental performance, a lion dance, Cantonese operatic songs, fortune-telling, a lantern quiz, a wish-making corner and roving entertainment were also very popular.
A nine-metre high, a revolving zoumadeng lantern standing in the playground was a hot spot for photo-taking. Crafted by two local paper-craft masters, the zoumadeng is hand painted with pictures of carp, goldfish, Chinese legends and traditional festive events of Hong Kong, with a flowering lotus on top. The lantern installations remains open to the public until February 6.
The LCSD will hold two more lantern carnivals on February 5 and 6. Details are as follows:
1. New Territories East Lunar New Year Lantern Carnival
Date and time: February 5 (Sunday)
7.30pm to 10.30pm
Venue : Tseung Kwan O Po Tsui Park
Programmes : Inner Mongolia ethnic songs and
dances, xöömei throat
singing and matouqin performances,
Chinese folk craft demonstrations,
unicorn dance, choral performance,
harmonica, accordion and saxophone
performances, arts pavilion, lantern
quiz, wish-making corner and roving
entertainment.
2. Urban Lunar New Year Lantern Carnival
Date and time: February 6 (Monday)
7.30pm to 10.30pm
Venue : HKCC Piazza
Programmes : Inner Mongolia ethnic songs and
dances, xöömei throat
singing and matouqin performances,
Chinese folk craft demonstrations,
Cantonese opera excerpts, Cantonese
folk music, Chinese ethnic dances,
dragon dance, lantern quiz,
fortune-telling, game
stalls and wish-making corner.
Apart from lantern carnivals, the "Hong Kong Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition on Craftsmanship of Festive Lion/Dragon Making" organised by Hong Kong Heritage Museum will remain on display in the foyer of the HKCC until February 8. The exhibition displays paper effigies of golden dragons, festive lion dances and Hailufeng unicorns to showcase traditional techniques by three local paper-craft masters.
Another thematic lantern exhibition, "Glittering Toys - A Showcase of Chinese Zodiac", will continue lighting up the HKCC Piazza until February 26. Lantern designs based on the 12 animals of Chinese Zodiac are interwoven with Chinese folk toys, such as clay toys and cloth toys from different parts of China. For example, the dragon lantern is modelled on clay toys of Shaanxi Province. In addition, eight "auspicious circle" lantern installations with themes including Five Blessings to Your Family, Successive Years of Surplus and Seasons of Wishful Days wish good fortune to members of the public.
Ends/Saturday, February 4, 2012
Issued at HKT 21:01
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