A MOON CELEBRATION
The South Island Moon Festival is a free, family-friendly event taking place on the City Promenade, as part of BLOOM, Christchurch’s spring festival of events. Moon Festivals are a traditional celebration in China and many East Asian communities.
On the corner of Armagh and Oxford Terrace, there will be an incredible display of traditional lanterns, animated by explosive performances from flame twirlers and fire breathers. Along the banks of the Avon River, you’ll find the wing of a dragon – the scaly creatures traditionally symbolise power, strength, and good luck. And would it be a Moon Festival without a lion dance? Lions have an important role in Chinese mythology, representing joy and happiness, and the dances chase away evil spirits and welcome prosperous times. Loud drumming, crashing cymbals, and gongs soundtrack the lion’s playful movements. If you watch carefully, you might see the lion scratching, shaking, and licking its fur.
Along the lantern trail and at Victoria Square, delicious noodles, dumplings and street food from across the world all come together. There will be cuisine from countries near and far, and you are guaranteed to be enticed by a range of snacks and meals, as well as coffee, sweet treats, and confectionery. The festival offers licenced bar areas for over 18s to grab a tipple while soaking up the entertainment. A perennial favourite of all savvy locals, Riverside Market, will also be open late, offering a range of exquisite food and high-quality treats to boost your energy levels.
The Astronomer’s Bar is blasting into the CBD, with an epic astronaut inflatable taking over Scott Statue Reserve. Reaching out to the night sky, the astronaut represents the pinnacle of human ambition, an adventurer connecting humankind to the celestial. While pondering the infinite mysteries of the universe, snap a selfie and grab a drink from the friendly crew at the Astronomer’s Bar. This will be open until 10pm each night.
You’ll also find a spot of street karaoke here, so start warming up your vocal cords to take to the largest outdoor karaoke stage ever to grace our fine city.
Make sure you also head down to The Commons and Victoria Square once the sun goes down on Saturday 20 November for Christchurch Casino’s Sky Show, the perfect event to delight families and surprise all festival-goers with a dazzling display of colour and light.
The Commons hosts quite the sight. At over 7.5 metres high, an enormous scale model of the full moon has floated down to visit. Created by a company that specialises in film props, the moon sits at the heart of the South Island Moon Festival. According to tradition, the spring cycle of the moon is a time of celebration, and the full Moon represents renewal, prosperity, and celebration.
Don’t forget about the entertainment. Amongst a myriad of others, you can see Starblingbling’s K-pop style dance and Christchurch Fellowship of Song, Dance and Drama celebrate music, performance, dance, singing, and language. The Chinese Cultural Association is a dynamic group of artists and advocates with an impressive range of creative forms. You can also expect contemporary and traditional dancing from Chinese, Uighur, and Mongolian culture and delightful performances from some of the Moon Festival’s youngest performers.
What a time for families to gather to watch the full moon, eat mooncakes, and celebrate. The festival runs from 18 to 21 November.