The largest East Asian Cultural and Arts festival Gala in Northern England was held at the City Hall in the centre of Sheffield on the 24th Feburary. The festival is returning for the first time since a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The representative of Mayor of the Sheffield Council, the Chancellor of the University of Sheffield, the Chancellor of Sheffield Hallam University, and the consuls of the Chinese Consulate General in Manchester attended the event.
The East Asian Culture and Art Festival has been held in Sheffield since 2017. It is an opportunity to show Sheffield citizens the culture and art of China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and other East Asian countries, including songs, dances and martial arts.
Mia Fang, 25, one of the festival’s organizers and stage director, said: “There are many foreigners and international students in Sheffield, and different cultures gather here.
“Unfortunately, the festival has been suspended for three years due to the pandemic. We hope to re-host it this year, so that more locals and interested people can understand the charm of East Asian culture.”
Ms Fang said that they prepared traditional, oriental classical dances for the party, as well as typical East Asian lion dance, which is a acrobatic performence by two people dressed as a lion, performing sumersults on high platfroms (as seen above).
More than 300 spectators attended the scene, not only from Sheffield, but from all over the north.
George Smith, a Liverpool resident who attended and watched the festival, said: “It’s really a wonderful festival. My family and I are interested in East Asian culture, Chinese martial arts, Japanese clothing, Korean pop music.
“It’s amazing — you can see all of them here. So excellent! “
Max Chen, a Chinese international student studying in the University of Sheffield, said: “I really enjoy the performances.
“To be honest, such wonderful traditional cultural performances are not common in my hometown China, it is unforgettable, especially the Chinese dances, which I have never seen live.”
Ms fang want to “break the strangeness and stereotypes of Asian culture that people here have, through different forms of expression, whether it is songs or dances”.
The gala was sponsored and supported by more than ten brand companies including two local universities in Sheffield to promote cultural exchanges and development.