All eyes were on the lion dancers as they moved dramatically down the hallway at Deep Run High School.
People lined the wall of the western Henrico County school with their cameras flashing to capture the movements.
Children watched in wide-eyed wonder as students from Jow Ga Kung Fu danced beneath the decorative lion costumes to the resonating drumbeat.
Not to be outdone, students from East-West Wing Chun Kung Fu followed with a dancing, slithering dragon.
The parade was the pinnacle of Sunday's celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year, which began Thursday. According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit.
"Wherever there is a festival in China, they usually have a parade associated with it," said John Kang, past president of the Organization of Chinese Americans – Central Virginia Chapter. "The lions are supposed to scare away evil spirits for the New Year."
A diverse crowd gathered at the five-hour extravaganza on Chinese culture that featured everything from food to dance to artwork. This marked the third year that the celebration was open to the public.
"We can take this opportunity to reach out to the community — not just Asian-Americans, but all Richmonders," said Quentin Yan, vice president of the central Virginia chapter. "Hopefully, if people don't know things about the culture, they can come here to learn."
For Matthew Nicholson and Lily Nicholson, Sunday's celebration offered them a chance to immerse themselves in their native culture.
Jennifer Nicholson and her husband adopted Matthew and Lily from China when they were 16 months and 9 months old, respectively.
Matthew, now 7, and Lily, now 9, were among the children making lanterns and firecracker decorations (red envelopes rolled into the shape of firecrackers and put on a string) before the parade started.
"I think it's wonderful they have these celebrations for the whole community, so that Matthew and Lily can be in touch with their heritage," said Jennifer Nicholson.
jslayton@timesdispatch.com
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