The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo continues the Asian-themed celebration that was started with the June Grand Opening of the Asian Highlands exhibit, by featuring a gorgeous limited engagement Asian Lantern Festival with displays distributed through the Zoo during the weekends for much of the summer. While stunning at any time, the 40 giant sized exhibits are especially magical and beautiful after the sun goes down. (Above Photo – OCA Cleveland Dragon Dance Team with Giant Dragon Lantern – Photo: Ed Wong).
The Zoo has been working with the AsiaTown and Cleveland Asian Festival leadership to ensure a respectful and authentic Asian-themed experience for the many Zoo guests. Zoo officials reached out to Johnny Wu to discuss the program over a year ago, and he and leaders Lisa Wong, Asim Datta, and Oanh Loi-Powell have been helping to plan and coordinate special Asian attractions for the events for months in advance. For the Asian Lantern Festival, these True Community Partners worked quietly to help bring authenticity to the cultural activities and performances. Some of the great attractions they recruited to perform at the Zoo includes: OCA Greater Cleveland Dragon Dance, Kwan Lion Dance Team, Shojoji Japanese Dancers, Westlake Chinese School, LingYun Rising Star Gymnastics School, Janice Liu Erhu Studio, Spartan Bhangra Dance Team, and more. It has been a great way to highlight Asian culture and diversity and the audience of the evening sold-out events have been some of the most gracious and appreciative in Cleveland.
OCA Cleveland Dragon Dance Performances Welcomed Guests to the Lantern Festival (Photo: Wayne Wong)
Sho-Jo-Ji Japanese Dancers Provide Engaging Traditional Performances (Photo: Ed Wong)
Originally, the Lantern Festival was scheduled to conclude August 19, but due to the popularity of the exhibit, the event has been extended – the last five days are Thursday August 30, through Monday September 3 from 6:30pm to 10:00 pm. See them before they are gone! #AsianHighlands #AsianLantern
Lantern Gateway Welcomed Guests to the Sold-Out Lantern Festival Events (Photo: Wayne Wong)
Panda Wall – One of 40 Giant Lantern Exhibits throughout the Zoo (Photo: Lisa Wong)
Wonderful Asian Themed Evenings at the Zoo (Photo: Wayne Wong)