Durham is preparing to celebrate the entry of the Year of the Pig in true Chinese style.
The Chinese New Year, which falls on Tuesday 5 February, will be celebrated with traditional music, dancing, storytelling, arts and more across Durham City on Saturday 9 February.
Entry is free to the event, which has been organised with support from Durham County Council, Durham BID, Durham University, Durham Chinese School and Durham Markets.
Traditional lion dancers will perform in Millennium Place at 12.30pm, when in a ritual said to bring good luck, Councillor John Lethbridge, the Mayor of Durham, will catch a lettuce from the lion. Further lion dance performances will then take place around the city centre throughout the afternoon.
Durham Town Hall will host a wide range of activities between 10.30am and 3.30pm, including:
• Chinese-themed performances by pupils from Shincliffe, Langley Moor, Neville’s Cross, Bearpark, St Margaret’s and Framwellgate Moor schools, who have been supported by University students;
• Traditional Chinese music, songs, dancing, Tai-Chi, fashion show and Chinese-themed jazz dancing by members of the Durham University Chinese Students and Scholars Association (DUCSSA) and pupils and parents from the Durham Chinese School;
• A Chinese tea ceremony, calligraphy, craft activities, chopstick activities, traditional handicrafts and seal and hairpin making and opportunities to buy New Year novelties;
• Chinese horoscopes led by Durham County Council’s International Office.
Clayport Library will host Chinese language taster sessions and storytelling sessions between 11am and 2pm, led by staff and students from the University’s School of Modern Languages and Cultures (MLAC).
To complement the city centre celebrations, Durham University’s Oriental Museum will also host special activities. On Saturday 9 February, visitors can make Chinese lanterns and paper cuts to decorate the Museum. Then on Tuesday 19 February, the museum will be open until 8pm for a New Year Lantern Festival, with traditional crafts, refreshments and stories and a gallery hunt.