On Feb. 21, the University of Nevada, Reno celebrated Asian traditions through cultural performances, food and festivities at the annual Lunar New Year Festival.
The festival took place at the Joe Crowley Student Union (JCSU) and was organized by The Multicultural Center, or The Center, and the Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) with sponsorships from One APIA Nevada, UNR Residential Life and ASUN.
Lunar New Year is a festival spanning 15 days marking the beginning of the new year. It is celebrated around the world, especially in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and other Asian cultures. 2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse and symbolizes high energy, drastic transformation and intense passion. The famous Chinese tradition traces back to the Shang Dynasty and follows the lunar calendar.
The festival represents the coming of spring and honoring ancestors and family, as well as removing negative energy and bringing in prosperity. Bright red is used in every aspect, from clothing to red envelopes filled with money to red paper lanterns hanging from above in an effort to symbolize good fortune and ward off negative energy. At UNR’s festival, the JCSU ballroom was decorated with red centerpieces, cherry blossoms and plum berries.
For UNR students with Asian heritage, the Lunar New Year Festival offers an opportunity to rejoice in tradition and embrace their identity. UNR junior Annie Thai, president of VSA, described the significance of the Lunar New Year for Asian American Pacific Islander students.
“Prior to last semester, we didn’t have a Vietnamese Student Association at UNR,” she said. “So we’re trying to put on more events for the Vietnamese-American community in Reno at UNR to sort of organize and celebrate together.”
The festival held activities such as crafting paper lanterns and decorating oranges for good luck. At VSA’s table, they hosted the Vietnamese “gambling game” called bầu cua cá cọp (with fake money).
For those craving cultural foods, there were a variety of Asian dishes, such as fried gyoza dumplings, japchae, jiang mein and more.
During the entire festival, performers of various cultures and ages took the stage. The audience was taken on a tour of Asia, spanning many decades. The performances ranged from historic traditional acts to modern, trendy dances.
Local Reno dance groups, such as Little Swan Dancers and Reno Chinese Dance Group, performed traditional Chinese folk dances that blended different regions of China and incorporated a Vietnamese dance-style.
The famous Chinese Lion Dance is essential to a Lunar New Year festival. The 5,000-year-old traditional dance is performed during the Lunar New Year to scare away evil spirits and repel negative energy, while bringing in good fortune and prosperity. Dancers brought the elongated lion costume to life — from head to tail — as Wolf Pack Taiko performed Japanese drumming, a blend of Chinese and Japanese culture.
UNR organizations such as VSA and Nevada Filipino Club showed up to represent their culture with traditional Vietnamese áo dàis and the Filipino folk dance tinikling. Additionally, UNR’s Urban Dance Club and Asian-interest sorority Kappa Phi Lambda included dance performances originally from artists of Asian descent, such as K-Pop groups and Bruno Mars.
The Musical Therapy Club performed covers of Asian artists like Keshi, Wave to Earth and more. Musical Therapy Club’s president, UNR senior Adrien Kyle Lopez, said “Asian music is one of the best ways to show that culture.”
The Lunar New Year Festival showcased Asian performances and offered an opportunity for UNR students to learn and appreciate Asian culture.
Sophomore Azure Samara is the community outreach chair for VSA. They welcome students who may not have Asian heritage or a deep knowledge of Asian culture to have fun at the festival and experience diverse lifestyles.
“It’s important for them [UNR students with limited knowledge] to understand different cultures and get to see all these different cultural performances,” they said.
Samara was one of the performers in the lion dance and recalled how onlookers expressed their astonishment and awe.
“I think it really gets people interested in learning about Vietnamese culture and understanding more about their fellow students who might be from those cultures,” they said.
Freshman Rebecca Lim spoke about how she attended the festival to support the Nevada Filipino Club, which she belongs to, and learn more about other clubs. Being half-Korean, she celebrated Lunar New Year with her family growing up and the festival allowed her to observe and admire how other cultures besides her own take part in the Lunar Year Year.
“I got to see a lot of Chinese and Vietnamese representation, which was really cool, considering I’m Korean and Filipino,” Lim said.
Aside from getting to enjoy Asian traditions and heritage, other students simply loved the friendship and harmony that goes into blending a diverse array of Asian cultures together. Along with Kim, freshman DeAngelo Halili came to the festival to support his friends and expose himself to other Asian cultures besides his own. After seeing everyone interact and have fun together, he felt even more pride in his Asian identity as a Filipino.
“It was just people bonding together and seeing that community, that sense of community that Filipinos have,” Halili said. “Everything [has] chill vibes and everybody’s really nice here.”
