Pacific Symphony to Present 2016 LANTERN FESTIVAL for Lunar New Year, 2/20

Orange County, Calif.-Feb. 3, 2016-Pacific Symphony partners with South Coast Chinese Cultural Center/Irvine Chinese School to present the "2016 Lantern Festival" commemorating the end of the Lunar New Year celebration. This free, family-friendly Lantern Festival-featuring the traditional dragon dance, riddles and lantern making usually associated with the end of the Lunar New Year-takes place Saturday, Feb. 20, from 3-6 p.m., in the lobby of the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, prior to the Symphony's opera production of Puccini's "Turandot." Musical highlights include string quartet performances by Pacific Symphony and Pacific Symphony Youth Orchestra, as well as Chinese folk dance and customary Chinese songs sung by the Irvine Chinese Chorus. Lanterns on display are curated by artist and curator Trinh Mai and include lanterns created by Irvine Chinese School students, as well as seniors from Nguoi Viet who are part of the Bowers Museum Treasures program.

The partnership between the Symphony and the Irvine Chinese School began with the founding of "Strings for Generations," a unique program where families play and learn about music together. Both programs are made possible thanks to support from The James Irvine Foundation. For more information on the Symphony's "Lantern Festival," please call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org.

"Pacific Symphony is looking forward to celebrating the 'Year of the Monkey' by welcoming the public to join us for an afternoon dedicated to family, renewal and community," says Director of Community Arts Participation Alison Levinson. "We have partnered with the Irvine Chinese School to put together what is sure to be a fun and festive afternoon honoring Chinese culture and this important time of year for many within our community."

The Lantern Festival, which can be traced back 2,000 years, takes place 15 days after the Lunar New Year-on the first night of the full moon in the lunar calendar-and marks the return of spring, representing the reunion of family. The act of lighting and appreciating lanterns is a way for people to let go of the burdens of their old selves and express their best wishes for themselves and their families for the future.

"The Culture Center of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office of Los Angeles (Santa Ana) generously brought us 200 original monkey lanterns from Taiwan, which we will be giving away as prizes for answering riddles," says Levinson, "so everyone should come early for the chance to win one of these special lanterns! Along with our amazing lineup of performances, the Bowers Museum will be hosting lantern making. All festival-goers have the chance to take part in a lantern parade on the Segerstrom plaza, which will culminate the event and help us welcome the Lunar New Year while celebrating brightness, hope and prosperity for the year to come."

The Irvine Chinese School was founded in 1976, and in the past 40 years has transformed itself from a local language school into an award-winning school and a leading Chinese language education institute. Currently, Irvine Chinese School provides multiple-level language classes for students from kindergarten to 12th grade and adults. Irvine Chinese School is registered under the Department of Education in California as Heritage language school and is one of the few Chinese language schools that have been granted accreditation by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. The current enrollment is 1,228 students.

Irvine Chinese School is part of South Coast Chinese Cultural Association, a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote Chinese language learning, to preserve Chinese heritage, to enhance the understanding of the value of Chinese culture and to advocate cultural diversity in America. With tremendous support from the communities, SCCCA built a permanent campus in 2005, and now offers community education, after school and summer programs in addition to events that promote Chinese culture, such as Chinese Cultural Festival and Chinese New Year Celebration. For more information, please visit http://www.sccca.org/

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