January 28, 2016
Philadelphia Museum of Art/for PhillyVoice
Philadelphia Museum of Art will host an Asian New Year event.
The Chinese New Year in 2016 will officially take place on Monday, Feb. 8, but many places around Philly are throwing weekend celebrations. Join in the festivities by watching live performances, sampling traditional fare, making paper lanterns or watching traditional lion dancers. All these activities and more can be found around the city in February to celebrate the Year of the Monkey.
International House Philadelphia will celebrate the Year of the Monkey by featuring Chinese cuisine and vendors, followed by live music and dance -- including a lion dance performance.
Friday, Feb. 5
7 p.m. | $5-$12 per person
International House Philadelphia
3701 Chestnut St.
(215) 387-5125
Guests can explore Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese traditions while enjoying family-friendly activities, demonstrations and performances throughout the day at Independence Seaport Museum's celebration.
Here is a list of activities throughout the day:
• Play Yut, which is a traditional Korean board game.Visitors will also have the opportunity to tour the China Trade exhibit, which tells the story of Philadelphia's maritime history on China's Pearl River in the 1700s.
All activities are included with museum admission, which is $10 to $15 per person.
Saturday, Feb. 6
11 a.m. to 3 p.m. | $10-$15 per person
Independence Seaport Museum
211 S. Columbus Blvd.
(215) 413-8655
At this family-friendly celebration there will be live performances, crafts and a parade. Listen to live music and try ribbon dancing, then make a paper lantern to take home before the End of the Day Monkey Parade.
The special event is free with admission to the museum, which is $17 per person. The museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and opens at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
Saturday, Feb. 6 through Monday, Feb. 8
$17 per person
Please Touch Museum
4231 Avenue of the Republic
(215) 581-3181
Head to Reading Terminal Market for cooking demos, traditional calligraphy and a Lunar New Year lion dance performance.
Saturday, Feb. 6
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Free
Reading Terminal Market
51 N. 12th St.
(215) 922-2317
Celebrate with firecrackers and watch a lion dance featuring the Philadelphia Suns. This parade will begin at 10th and Race streets and continue through Chinatown.
Sunday, Feb. 7
10:30 p.m. | Free
10th and Race streets
Celebrate the Year of the Monkey with a performance by Dance China NY, a Chinese lantern art activity, calligraphy demonstrations and tours focused on East Asian art.
The first Sunday of the month is pay-what-you-wish admission at the museum.
Sunday, Feb. 7
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Pay-what-you-wish
Philadelphia Museum of Art
2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway
(215) 763-8100
Join in a parade through Chinatown with firecrackers, martial arts performances and lion dances to welcome in the Year of the Monkey.
Sunday, Feb. 14
11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Free
10th and Spring streets
