Performing Arts
Lion dancers at Lunar Lanes, Sydney. Image: Courtesy City of Sydney.
2023 is a special year in the lunar calendar, celebrating two zodiacs – the rabbit and the cat. While it is the Year of the Rabbit in countries such as China and Korea, the Vietnamese community celebrates the Year of the Cat.
The Lunar New Year begins on Sunday 22 January, with Saturday 21 January marking the last day of the Year of the Tiger.
Check out these arts events and festivals happening in your state.
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Melbourne Museum celebrates Lunar New Year by offering you the opportunity to find out your zodiac animal, listen to late-night DJs, create your own Sea Bunny and join a storytelling session.
Saturday 21 January, 10am-10pm
The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) presents a day of free events, including paper lantern workshops, a live DJ set at the newly commissioned Temple of Boom, K-pop dance sessions and more. Rediscover the NGV Asian Art Collection with Auspicious Symbols Guided Tours, in English, Mandarin and Auslan.
Sunday 22 January, 10am-3pm
Chinese Museum and Street Festival day is offering discounted entry at the Museum of Chinese History. On view are four exhibitions – Lucky Rabbit featuring the work of artist and textile designer Chris Chun, One Million Stories: Chinese Australians 200 years, Han Dynasty: Life Everlasting and Finding Gold: Chinese on the Goldfields. The festival in Chinatown will feature a Millennium Dragon parade, lion dances, market stalls and stage performances.
Sunday 22 January, 10am-9pm, (Museum 1.45pm-6pm, last entry 5pm)
Author Stephen Zhang will be hosting a reading on ‘What Chinese Lunar New Year Means to Me’ at Micro-Labs Melbourne together with four international students who will share personal stories. Treats and tea will be provided.
Sunday 22 January, 1.30-5pm
Complete the Melbourne CBD experience with Lunar New Year at Fed Square, featuring tai chi, Chinese dance classes, brush painting workshops and more.
Sunday 22 January, 9.30am-1.30pm
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will host its 10th annual Chinese New Year concert, inspired by the natural beauty of Sichuan Province. The one-night only performance will be conducted by the Artistic Director of the Sichuan Symphony Orchestra, Darrell Ang.
Sunday 4 February, 7.30pm, ticketed
Sydney Lunar Festival returns with a showcase of artworks by 36 enthusiastic young artists aged 6-12. Their vibrant take on the Year of the Rabbit theme will be displayed on illuminated plinths down George Street, ranging from a flying rabbit boat to one singing their heart out. Five Asian-Australian artists also share their works in a series of banners, including Yasuko Toda, Pei W Kwang, Si Yi Shen, Nancy Liang and Hyun Hee Lee.
The Festival’s full program is packed with arts and cultural offerings, including Mandarin tours of Hyde Park Barracks and the Sydney Opera House, community exhibitions, the Haymarket street festival and a Silk Road themed musical journey accompanied by a five-course meal.
Some satellite events include a talk at the Sydney Mechanics School of Arts on ‘The Yin and Yang of the the Chinese Zodiac in the Year of the Rabbit’ on 21 January and Chinese Culture Workshops at the Australian National Maritime Museum on 4-5 February. Currently on view at Chau Chak Wing Museum is Sentient Paper, an exhibition showcasing Chinese paper art from classical to contemporary and at the China Cultural Centre there’s an exhibition of Chinese painting using traditional techniques, which runs until 24 February.
Saturday 21 January – Sunday 5 February
City of Parramatta celebrates Lunar New Year with five giant inflatable rabbits taking over Parramatta Square and Centenary Square, live music and cultural performances and more. Symphony Under the Stars also returns with a Lunar New Year twist (performance at 8pm).
Saturday 21 January, 4pm-9.30pm
The multicultural Sense Asia 2023 Rhodes Lunar New Year Festival will be held at Rhodes Foreshore Park to acknowledge the diversity of cultures and communities that share this celebration.
Sunday 22 January, 10am-6pm
Lunar New Year celebrations at AGNSW kicks off as part of the gallery’s Art After Hours program, featuring Shahmen Suku (aka Radha) and Nicholas Ng with a cooking performance, storytelling and musical collaboration. Qing Fong Lion Dance team take over the gallery on 4 February, with Korean Australian artist Hyun Hee Lee hosting calligraphic writing and stitching workshops for children and families.
25 January – 26 February
Chatswood Year of the Rabbit Festival launches with a rabbit sculpture trail, followed by the Lunar New Year Comedy Festival (28 January), Symphony in the Park – East Meets West (29 January), Twilight Lantern Parade (5 February) and Milan Ring featuring Yeo and Rainbow Chan (10 February).
18 January – 12 February
Thai Town Lunar Fest will feature Thai arts and crafts, and lots of local delicacies.
Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 February, 11am-6pm
Cabramatta Luna New Year 2023 festival celebrates the Year of the Cat and the Year of the Rabbit in Fairfield City with amusement rides, fireworks, and even a meet and greet with the beloved Japanese character, Hello Kitty.
Saturday 4 February, 11am-8pm
Discover Lunar Sea at the Maritime Museum with calligraphy, Chinese painting and opera face mask painting. Outdoor performances of traditional Chinese instruments and a lion dance will ignite the festive mood in a program presented in partnership with the China Cultural Centre.
Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 February, 10am-3pm
4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art celebrates two newly commissioned projects by Asian Australian artists. On view is solo exhibition of Vietnamese Australian artist Rel Pham, Cache until 12 February; and A Pair of Marbled Cone Snails Races to Chinatown for The Special Braised Eggplant by Indonesian Australian artist and designer, Evi O, until 16 February.
There are more rabbits to catch. Head to White Rabbit Gallery for its exhibition Shuo Shu 说书, where you can delve into the fascinating world of stories and their role in China, from past to present.
Until 14 May
Read: Exhibition review: Shuo Shu 说书 (Storytelling), White Rabbit Gallery
BrisAsia Festival returns to celebrate Lunar New Year with a major launch party (Friday 3 February), martial arts displays, local drag sensation Crimson Coco and more. New festival experiences for 2023 include the immersive multidisciplinary experience Soul Gazing: A Journey through the Cosmic Skydome (Saturday 4 February) at the Sir Thomas Brisbane Planetarium and the BrisAsia Pop-Up Exhibition, Youth with You (4-11 February).
1-19 February
A special Lunar New Year event will also be held at Brunswick Street Mall, Fortitude Valley with a Vietnamese clay figures workshop, comedy, drumming, martial arts and an LED lion show.
Saturday 21 January, 4-8pm
Lunar New Year in Gold Coast kicks off with lion and dragon dancers, an interactive wishing tree, and fan and umbrella dancing, before drawing to a close with a fireworks finale.
Sunday 22 January, 3-8pm
This year’s Adelaide Festival Centre Lunar New Year artist is Khanh Mai, who has created a mural to be unveiled on 28 January. Mai says of the work: ‘While Lunar New Year is a tradition that originates in Asia, I wanted to highlight its significance and celebration here in Adelaide, Australia. Here it is not only the Asian communities that take part in festivities, but it’s a celebration open to all. As such, this work is also about the meeting and exchange of cultures that so frequently takes place in multicultural countries like Australia.’ This project is part of an ongoing relationship with Adelaide Central School of Art.
28 January – 28 February
Tale of the Fire Phoenix presented by School of Chinese Music and Arts brings to the stage a fusion of Western and Chinese cultural with the music storytelling of Zhao Liang. It’s at Adelaide Festival Centre for one show only.
Saturday 28 January, 3pm, tickets
Perth Chinese New Year Fair returns and is hosted by the Chung Wah Association. Everyone is invited to join in the celebrations with workshops, games, rides, performances and more, at one of the most significant free community events in Perth.
Sunday 29 January, 12 noon-9pm
A Lunar New Year Celebration, which began on Friday 13 January, will culminate in a main celebration in Dickson, Canberra. The festival celebration features local community group and lion dance performers, roving artists and a zodiac rabbit sculpture. Visitors can support local businesses and celebrate talent on the outdoor stage.
Saturday 21 January, 1-11pm
2023 Darwin Chinese New Year Festival will be held at the Sitzler Netball Stadium with free entry and a series of performances, activities and more. Head over for a day of family fun.
Saturday 18 February, 10.30am-8pm
Celebrate Lunar New Year in Hobart with the ninth annual festival organised by the Chinese Community Association of Tasmania. Check out a range of family activities on the picturesque lawns of Parliament House. There will be a traditional costume and Cheongsam parade, sword performance, lion dance and a two-metre long firecracker – block your ears and make some noise!
Sunday 22 January, 10am-4pm
Lion and dragon dancers are no doubt a must-have at Lunar New Year celebrations. If you’re staying at home, however, it’s worth checking out the Chinese animated movie I Am What I Am – a story of how one Cantonese boy is able to overcome self-doubt to compete in a grand lion dancing championship. Goes well with a bowl of dumplings…
Celina Lei is an Arts Writer at ArtsHub. She acquired her masters in Art, Law and Business in New York with a B.A. in Art History and Philosophy from the University of Melbourne. She has previously worked across global art hubs in Beijing, Hong Kong and New York in both the commercial art sector and art criticism. Prior to joining ArtsHub, she was an editorial assistant at the Hong Kong based ArtAsiaPacific magazine and is an art host on independent Instagram platform Club Ambroise. Celina is based in Naarm/Melbourne, Victoria. Instagram: @lleizy_
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