Chinese New Year hits the right note in Birmingham

Birmingham will be snapping open the fortune cookies to welcome the Chinese New Year. Firecrackers, music and traditional Dragon Dance all kick off the official Year of the Rat celebrations in Birmingham’s Chinese Quarter.

There is a spectacular afternoon of free entertainment including acrobatic performances by the Bai-Ling Chinese Acrobatics Co Ltd (UK) where children from the Overseas Chinese Association School and Birmingham Chinese School perform traditional dances. Adding their own unique musical accompaniment is the Birmingham Chinese Society Karaoke Group who will be in full voice on Sunday 10th February.

If this whets your appetite, tuck into a traditional Chinese New Year dinner at Henry’s – a Cantonese restaurant nestled in Birmingham’s unique Jewellery Quarter. The sumptuous three course banquet is topped off with live entertainment, traditional Chinese music and even a lion dance! This celebratory meal is available at Henry’s on Thursday 7th February at £35 per person.

Chinese New Year is the first in a series of activities to celebrate Chinese culture in Birmingham. Aspects of China at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery from 8th February is a new permanent display of the recently acquired Franklin Collection of Chinese Art.

The display and its interpretation will be developed in collaboration with members of Birmingham’s Chinese community. This will include outstanding examples of Chinese ceramics from the Song (960-1279), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

The Town Hall will host the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra on 17th March. This concert of traditional and contemporary Chinese music pieces will be performed by the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra led by artistic director and principal conductor Yan Huichang.

The impressive 85-piece ensemble comprises of traditional and improved Chinese instruments (some with origins of over 1000 years old), which played together with Western style instruments, creates a unique and mesmerising sound.

These events form part of ‘China Now’, a nationwide showcase of the very best of modern China in 2008 starting in February and continuing through to the end of July and the opening of the Beijing Olympics. The festival programme features a wide range of cultural projects and performances encompassing art, design, cuisine, culture, science, business, technology, education and sport.

Two further exhibitions at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery later in the year include Camera in Canton: Photographs by Felice Beato, 10th May - 10th August of vintage photographs, taken from the Central Library archive, of the Chinese city of Canton - now known as Guangzhou - and its surroundings, taken by Felice Beato during the Anglo-French military expedition to China during the Second Opium War.

Bejing Map Games, 18th October 2008 to 4th January 2009 will be the most comprehensive exhibition of contemporary art from China ever shown in the UK. The project that reflects the rapid changes dramatically influencing the appearance and dynamics of Beijing city. All the works will be specially commissioned for the exhibition.

Birmingham’s Chinese Quarter is a colourful and vibrant community that exists in the heart of the city. It includes many Chinese restaurants, supermarkets and some fine examples of Chinese architecture.