Chinese New Year was celebrated at Clark on March 4, three weeks after China celebrates the annual event. The event drew a crowd of approximately 200 people.
2008 is the Year of the Rat, traditionally known as Wu Zi, according to China the Beautiful Web site. Chinese New Year was celebrated in China on Feb. 7 and is the oldest chronological record in history, dating back to 2600 B.C. The Chinese calendar, currently in the year 4705, is based on the lunar cycle of the sun, moon and stars.
The event was hosted by the Associated Students of Clark College (ASCC). It was organized by J.B. Wheelon, Clark student and ASCC Activities programming board director number one.
“I wanted to do something culturally themed, so I drew cultures from a hat and China was the one,” Wheelon said.
Guests dined on Panda Express while watching the Lion Dancers, a group of traditional Chinese dancers from Portland.
“I was expecting around 150 to 200 people to show up for the event,” Wheelon said. “There was more than that.”
At approximately 11:15 a.m. there were more than 97 people in line for Panda Express food.
When the Lion Dancers came onstage, a member addressed the crowd and said, “The louder and crazier you guys are, the louder and crazier we are.” The guests began shouting in response.
The Lion Dancers came onstage in traditional Chinese Lion costumes with two people per costume. They performed for the crowd by jumping on tables and performing many aerobic stunts.
“We feed off the crowd,” Brian Do, a member of the Lion Dancers, said. “It was a very energetic crowd.”
The Lion Dancers have been together for about 10 years, the team that performed has been together for seven years, Do said.
“The lunar New Year just passed, so we’ve been doing a lot of performances,” Do said. “I think we went out with a bang.”
“I thought the Lion Dancers were cool,” Clark student Amanda Bradford said. “The first dance was cool because it showed skill, but the second one was more interpretive, which was funny.”
Wheelon said that scheduling postponed the event. “It was the best day to get booked, especially with Jesus Christ Superstar going on, but it was a bang.”
The event cost about $1,700 altogether, said Wheelon. Panda express was about $1,000, the Lion Dancers were about $350, the decoration were around $150 and the pop was about $300.
The Lion Dancers were contacted through an events company and decided they would play at the event in honor of the Chinese New Year. Do said that the turnout they expected because of the free food was a factor in playing at the event.
“The food was good, but I know they ran out near the end, which is too bad,” Bradford said.
Carole Mangels, a Clark student, said, “I just came for the food, but I found that it was actually a really cool event.”
“Each quarter, the students are improving with their events,” Samantha Lelo, activities coordinator at Clark, said as she was cleaning up after the event.
“This event turned out better then I had hoped,” Wheelon said.
