Chinese Cultural Days at the Missouri Botanical Gardens (4344 Shaw Boulevard, 314-577-5100, missouribotanicalgarden.org) is back, and this year, the event is focusing on its roots with a new theme: Celebrating Communities.
“We are a community which has had a presence in St. Louis for 150 years,” says Min Liu, this year's host committee chair. “As a cultural festival, we have been active since the mid 90s. We are proud of that heritage and that tradition.”
The celebration, which will take place from Saturday, April 22, and Sunday, April 23, will include classic acts, as well as performances from renowned artists. It is one of the largest cultural showcases in the Midwest.
The festival’s manpower is entirely made up of volunteers, which this year totals 800. Liu says this highlights how this event is by the community, for the community.
“We are so proud to be part of this celebration and this tradition,” Liu says. “The St. Louis’ Chinese and Asian American community is very diverse. What defines us as a community is that shared investment. These initiatives [like Chinese Cultural Days] bring us together.”
One of the event’s most popular attractions continues to be the Grand Parade featuring a 70-foot dancing dragon. However, new additions have been added to the roster. Performances from a dance troupe out of Webster University will be sure to delight, and there will be a local immersion kindergarten, Little Sprouts Chinese Immersion Preschool, to get the crowd going.
Liu is especially grateful to have the support of its long-standing partner Chinese Culture Education and Services, a St. Louis nonprofit fostering Chinese heritage, which has partnered with the Botanical Garden since the festival’s inception.
Along with performances, there will be special tours of the Margaret Grigg Nanjing Friendship Garden, better known as the Chinese Garden, which focuses on the symbolism of many plant species and architectural details prominent in Chinese culture.
The garden is modeled on the “scholar’s gardens” of the southern provinces of China, near Nanjing. Here, you will see a hand-carved white marble bridge with a moon arch, as well as bamboos, willows, plum trees, forsythia, hibiscus, wisteria, peonies, lotuses, rhododendrons and azaleas.
Liu loves the garden, along with all of the events. But she also recommends parents with children head to the DIY crafts — which can be booked by appointment since space is limited — and the performances that will take place in the amphitheater.
One of those performances will be Lina Liu, a Guinness-record holding acrobat from New York City. She’s performed on television programs like the Go-Big Show on TBS. This will be her second time at Chinese Cultural Days.
Visitors can expect to see her performance featuring plate spinning, contortion in a crystal ball, kicking umbrellas, flying dragon drums, a "changing faces" routine — a traditional magic show that originated from Chinese opera — and a red ribbon dance, which she’ll use to form patterns and designs in the air.
“If you’re not super into the loud stuff,” Liu says, “We also have a wonderful Chinese calligrapher and painter [coming to the amphitheater].”
The artist, Liu Sun, will produce more than 40 Chinese paintings and calligraphy works over the course of the event. All of these works will come from the inspiration he finds within the gardens’ landscapes, flowers, birds, fish and insects.
Along with producing paintings, Sun will offer live demonstrations twice a day in the amphitheater. He will introduce participants to the tools and basic techniques within his practice. He also will give a lecture within the demonstration on the related progression and philosophy of traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting.
Chinese Cultural Days will also feature Hong Wang, a renowned erhu (a two-stringed bowed musical instrument) and Chinese wind instruments soloist. Wang will bring his vast collection of wind, clay and string instruments.
Wang’s career has spanned popular film, working with composers for documentaries, movies and TV. You can hear him in DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness and The Legend of Korra. He also has performed all over the world with orchestras and festivals.
The festival takes place at the Missouri Botanical Gardens from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 22, and Sunday, April 23. Tickets are $16 for adults, $8 for children ages 3 to 12 and garden members. Children under 12 get in free. Advance tickets are recommended.
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