Talent, food and fun were offered at the Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Chinese Club’s Lunar New Year Festival on Feb. 16 from 6-8 p.m. in the SPFHS Cafeteria.

This celebration is for the Lunar New Year, an important holiday in many Asian countries. At the festival, students and their families were invited to taste various traditional Asian foods and watch a talent showcase. 

Tickets for the event were sold in advance  for seven dollars and 10 dollars at the door. The procession began in the MPR with a Chinese food buffet. 

“The food was amazing, especially the dumplings,” said senior Joseph Entin. 

Dumplings, fried rice, spring rolls, orange chicken, ramen noodles and shrimp chips were among the foods served. Mandarin Club members cooked and donated food for the event, providing a homemade touch. 

Once the dinner portion was over, guests moved to the cafeteria to view the talent show. To begin, members of the Mandarin Club presented a fashion show wearing traditional Chinese robes.

Following the fashion show, an array of performances took place. There was a Chinese yo-yo show, karaoke and a saxophone show, with a finale of the dragon dance. These performances are intended to bring prosperity and good luck and ward off evil spirits in the New Year. 

Much preparation was put into this event, as Li Salewski who teaches Mandarin l, ll, lll and lV dedicated class time to practice the performances.

“This event was inspired by and from the heart of the hope to spread and grow Asian culture awareness,” sophomore Zhao Chen said. “Since the Chinese New Year is a widely celebrated holiday on the other half of the globe, we want more people to be aware and experience our unique culture and holiday spirit.”