The Chinese Year of the Tiger has started with a roar, and the launch of a vibrant online celebration of the Auckland Lantern Festival 2022.
The popular annual event makes its online debut, where a curated line-up of Lantern Festival music, dance, craft, and culture has been assembled for all to enjoy during the 16 days of Chinese New Year festivities and beyond.
Up to 100,000 Aucklanders and visitors were expected to attend the 2022 festival, held from 10 -13 February at the Auckland Showgrounds, which was cancelled after New Zealand moved into the red setting of the Covid-19 Protection Framework.
The online Lantern Festival programme, live from today, has been created so that everyone can experience the sights, sounds and festival vibe of the much-loved event from wherever they are.
On offer are Lantern festival music playlists, favourite Chinese recipes, craft guides, games, videos, and a photo gallery of some of the 800 magnificent lanterns especially created for this year’s event.
There are links to exhibitions in Auckland celebrating the Chinese New Year, Chinese films, and a guide to the best restaurants in the city to experience a Chinese New Year feast.
Auckland Lantern Festival event producer, Eric Ngan, says the online programme was always intended to be part of this year’s festival offering and is now the focus of the event team’s Chinese New Year programme.
“We’ve created a destination where festival fans can experience a taste of the atmosphere and vibrancy of the on-site event, and celebrate Chinese culture and our Auckland Chinese communities,” he says.
Eric Ngan says the online content will be updated daily throughout the festival period and will remain live with more additions well after the traditional New Year celebrations end.
“We want to thank our community of performers, stallholders, and sponsors who have been so important in creating the content for this online celebration,” he says.
“The Auckland Lantern Festival is a celebration for everyone, and we hope our online festivities help launch the Year of the Tiger with collective optimism, enthusiasm and fun.”
