January 24, 2024
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
The Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Festival opens this weekend for a Jan. 26-28 run.
Royalty from the tattoo world and the Disney universe will soon descend on Philadelphia for an inky, icy weekend.
From Friday through Sunday, internationally renowned tattoo artists (and a few "Ink Master" contestants) will set up shop for a festival in Chinatown that also features sword swallowers and falcons. And at nearby Franklin Square on Saturday, four Disney heroines associated with water (the frozen and flowing kind) will lead a game-filled Ice Princess Night.
Penn Museum will help usher in the Year of the Dragon with an early Lunar New Year party on Saturday, and the Please Touch Museum will welcome its traveling Namaste India exhibit on Friday.
Tattoo needles will be buzzing all weekend at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. During the 26th annual Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Festival, visitors can get a new piece of body art from one of many artists on site or enjoy entertainment from circus and sideshow performers. The festival opens Friday for a three-day run, but guests can also snag some 75-cent pierogies at an opening party at Tattooed Mom on Thursday.
Lunar New Year doesn't officially start until Feb. 10, but celebrations are starting early at the Penn Museum this Saturday. Between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., the museum will welcome Chinese and Korean dancers to the Harris Auditorium for performances and a live calligraphy demonstration. Elsewhere in the halls, martial arts experts and a K-pop troupe will show off their skills. It all ends with a lion dance, led by the Penn Lions.
Kids can take photos with ice princesses (and a few from the sea or bayou) at a free Franklin Square event on Saturday. The park's Ice Princess Night will feature photo ops with Anna and Elsa from "Frozen," Tiana from "The Princess and the Frog" and Ariel from "The Little Mermaid." Other activities include games, giveaways and sing-alongs — presumably to some of the Disney princesses' power ballads. The festivities run from 5 to 7 p.m.
A new exhibit on Indian culture comes to the Please Touch Museum on Friday for a three-month stint. Namaste India features lots of hands-on experiences, including block printing, cricket and simulated three-wheeled rides in a tuk-tuk, a motorized rickshaw. Kids can also make roti or walk the red carpet in a special Bollywood section that features clips from famous films. The opening day includes bonus dance performances and art and spice workshops.
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