The biting wind of yet another snowstorm did not deter ticket holders from flocking to the annual Lunar New Year Gala presented by the Chinese American Association of Lexington (CAAL) on Saturday, Feb. 7. It was a full house at Cary Memorial Hall.
At a time of divisive national debate around immigration and identity, Lexington’s celebration emphasized unity and shared civic life.
“We really wanted to celebrate Chinese culture in different styles and traditions. To have that celebrated in Cary Memorial Hall during the nation’s 250th anniversary, celebrating a different culture, a different history, but being all together, is a really big thing,” said event chair and performance director Qian Hu.
Excited to welcome the Year of the Horse, families, friends, and Town officials filled the 800 seats of Cary Memorial Hall to take in the classical opera, children’s chorus, modern and traditional dance, martial arts, and more.
From its modest beginnings as a small Lunar New Year banquet, the event has become one of the largest Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in the Greater Boston area, drawing performers and audiences from across the region.
CAAL, which has been serving Lexingtonians since its founding in 1983, thoughtfully curated a celebration of culture and community, shepherded by Hu and her co-event chair, Jian Deng. The Chinese American community that CAAL serves has grown steadily in Lexington, which, according to the Census Bureau, now has one of the highest percentages of Asian residents in Massachusetts.
Hu said the audience has become increasingly mixed over the years. “The number of non-Chinese speaking audience is increasing,” she said, though the crowd is still largely Chinese and Chinese American, including both recent immigrants and families who have lived in the United States for generations. “You see them as Chinese on their face, but we’re really American here.”
Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, marks the beginning of the lunar calendar and is traditionally a time for family gatherings and wishes for prosperity. While an event like this seeks to share Chinese art forms and the symbolism behind the celebration, it also helps to preserve traditional Chinese art forms for the future by encouraging younger generations to participate.
Hu has been involved with CAAL since moving to Lexington nearly two decades ago. Hu approaches the gala with what she describes as a systematic, long-term mindset, particularly this year as she mentors new co-event chair, Deng, to partner in the endeavor. “It takes a whole village,” she says.
The two-hour program features performers spanning generations of Lexington residents, showcasing both traditional and modern acts.
One of this year’s original performances was created by CAAL members. The “Legend of the Boat” weaves together two traditional folk songs into a single staged narrative. The first song tells of a woman who wants to visit her family on the other side of the Yangtze River but cannot cross the wide section alone. She needs someone to pull the boat. The second song is about a group of men who work pulling the boats through that section of the river with bamboo and ropes. Bringing the songs and performers together reflected the evening’s “Better Together” theme. CAAL members designed the boat prop used in the performance, painting it at a local art studio and using a CAAL member’s auto shop to build it.
Hu said she intentionally shaped the night into “four chapters,” starting with a first section built around New Year symbolism, “celebration flowers,” “the galloping horse,” and “the little fish,” all meant to convey prosperity and good wishes for the year ahead.
Subsequent chapters moved from classical works such as Peking Opera and Dream of the Red Chamber to contemporary pieces and performances representing China’s diverse ethnic traditions, before closing with a traditional Lion Dance. Among the featured performers was renowned Sichuan Opera artist Mr. Yang, who performed the theatrical art of Bian Lian, or “face changing,” in which vividly colored masks transform in a flash of a fan.
An excerpt from the classic Peking Opera Red-Maned Horse, performed by the Boston Beijing Opera Association, showcased the musical richness of traditional Chinese performance. The evening also included a debut appearance by soprano Qianhui Yin, a former faculty member at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music, who performed “Festival Songs.”
Hu points out that so many of the performances, “in addition to showcasing different styles, also have a deep history and cultural significance.” The opening dance, she explained, was designed as storytelling rather than spectacle. “The flowers are symbolic of prosperity, the galloping horse is really celebrating that Year of the Horse, and the lantern element is the celebration of the new year.”
She added that even lighter moments carried meaning, noting that “fish in Chinese pronunciation is Yu,” a homophone for prosperity, which is why fish traditionally appear at New Year banquets as a wish for abundance.
That sense of continuity was especially evident near the end of the program, when two Mongolian dances echoed across generations. One was performed by a senior group, “the average age is about 80,” Hu said, and another by young girls, with a grandmother in the first dance and her granddaughter in the second.
While the gala spotlights Chinese traditions and art forms, Hu emphasized that it is “not only just the Chinese performance.” The program regularly includes the Children’s Community Chorus, which she described as “all the children in Lexington, not just the Chinese.”
Behind the 23 performances and 240 performers is a logistical undertaking that functions as CAAL’s annual fundraiser. “This is the only fundraising event,” Hu said, noting that all operational costs depend on the gala. This year, more than 40 sponsors contributed, ranging from local Chinese-owned businesses to area banks and financial institutions. Volunteers handled ticketing, finances, staging, and rehearsal coordination, while town staff supported lighting, sound, and fire detail. “It really takes a lot of all the CAAL members and also a lot of volunteers to make this happen,” Hu said.
Even a local bakery, Sweet Thymes, donated 100 rice cakes, nián gāo, a New Year sweet whose name is a homophone for “higher every year,” symbolizing growth and good fortune.
For Hu, the evening’s theme, “Better Together,” came through the collaboration of performers spanning generations, schools lending backdrops, businesses offering sponsorship, and neighbors filling Cary Memorial Hall on a winter night. “I am very, very grateful to every performing team and instructor. Everyone worked so hard and was so supportive,” Hu said.
OTHER CHINESE NEW YEAR EVENTS HAPPENING IN LEXINGTON
Chinese Americans of Lexington (CALex) are hosting their Chinese New Year Gala on Saturday, February 28, from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM at Lexington High School (LHS). You can find more details about the event at this link.
The Lexington Symphony will feature the international Mongolian morin khuur soloist, Dr. Erdenbuhe Feburary 14 at 7:30PM. Info and tickets here.