KINGSTON, R.I. – Feb. 22, 2023 – The Chinese Language Flagship Program is celebrating the Year of the Rabbit at the Memorial Union on Friday, Feb. 24, from 2 to 4 p.m. All are welcome to the free celebration, which will feature performances, traditional Chinese festival snacks, crafts, and games.

Yiping Zhang, an associate teaching professor of Chinese, organized the event. “There will be two parts of the celebration,” Zhang said. “One will be a student performance of songs in Chinese, poetry recitation, and dancing to Chinese music.”

The second part of the performance will be a video presentation made by two international online tutors from Beijing. One piece is of the video features music from an erhu, a special two-string, bowed Chinese instrument, nicknamed a “Chinese violin.” The second piece is an episode of a Chinese opera developed from the famous story of “Dream of the Red Chamber.”

“Both tutors are students from the Beijing Language and Culture University, the first university in China to offer Chinese to international students,” said Wayne He, director of URI’s Chinese Flagship Program. “Their major is Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, and both are doing internships by tutoring our flagship students.”

URI’s Chinese New Year celebration has been in existence for 10 years, He said. During the pandemic, the celebration was held online.

The celebration will include a variety of activities, including making an origami rabbit and paper lantern, a culture corner with brief lessons about Chinese culture, and a Chinese New Year trivia game. Qingyu Yang, an instructor in the flagship program and teacher of a Chinese calligraphy course, will write couplets and show visitors how to write using traditional characters.

Traditional Chinese snacks will be available in bags that will include Chinese rice cakes, crispy rice, and White Rabbit Creamy Candy, a popular brand of milk candy in China. “There is a wrapper on the outside, along with a second wrapper that is actually made of rice that can be eaten,” He said.  

Zhang and He are looking forward to the celebration. “The most exciting thing is when you see your students participating and having fun,” Zhang said. “It makes the work worth it.”

He is also anticipating the event. “Of course! Especially because it’s the first time it is back [in person] since the pandemic.”

The rabbit is a symbol of good luck, said He.  “Many sayings incorporate the rabbit, such as leaping forward to success.”

Zhang said there are lucky elements as well. “Parents like the idea of having children born in the Year of the Rabbit. They are kind, gentle, and sensitive. They will be lucky in wealth, in business, and in other financial endeavors.”

“We hope our colleagues will spread the word about this event,” He said. “Everyone is welcome.”

This article was written by Hugh Markey.