The performance was held during the annual Mid-Autumn Festival Garden Party put on by the IU Chinese Students and Scholars Association.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a Chinese and Vietnamese harvest celebration, said Tianyu Chen , the secretary of IUCSSA.
“It’s one of the biggest events in China,” Chen said. “It’s a time for families to get together and celebrate.”
Chen, a junior from Beijing, said the IUCSSA puts on its festival for students missing the festivities at home and to expose others to this traditional Chinese holiday.
The festival spanned all of Dunn Meadow and included traditional Chinese games, performances by Chinese student dance groups and bands and booths by several student organizations on campus, including a calligraphy club and a Buddhist group.
Chen said new at the festival this year were several puppies for attendees to play with, organized by a new student business that describes itself as a Craigslist for the Chinese community at IU. The students in charge of the animal pen said anyone can join the site, but it primarily consists of Chinese items and services.
The crowds at the festival seemed to congregate around a large tent decorated with pink and white balloons under which more than 10 different traditional Chinese dishes from Lotus Garden were served free of charge.
“I think the food is why most of the students come,” Chen said. “It is my favorite part.”
Chen said most of the games at the event — including variations on jump rope, a three-legged race and musical chairs — require players to move around.
“It’s a good exercise, and everyone can do it,” she said.
Leading the three-legged race was festival volunteer Maggie Guan , a freshman from Beijing.
“It’s a very common game in China, especially in schools,” Guan said of the race.
Guan said the festival is celebrated in China with a big family dinner, comparable to an American Thanksgiving. She said she misses being with her family but is happy the festival is being celebrated at IU.
“It’s my first time here, so I’m liking meeting all the people,” she said.
Guan said another highlight is the traditional mooncake, which she described as the symbol of the festival.
Guan described mooncakes as a flavorful sweet or savory egg-based cake with the consistency of firm custard.
The intricately designed mooncakes served at the festival were sweet and purchased from a Chinese market in Chicago, Guan said.
“My favorite part of the festival is family and mooncake,” she added.
Another fan of the mooncake is Xian Xiang , a visiting scholar at IU from Beijing who came to the festival with his wife and two-year-old son.
Like Guan, Xiang said he misses celebrating the festival in China with a large family gathering but said he was happy to come to the IU event because it is an opportunity to meet new people.
“You can meet lots of other Chinese students and visiting scholars,” he said.
Xiang said another difference between the celebrations in the U.S. and China is that the Mid-Autumn Festival is a public holiday in China.
“Everyone is out of office,” he said. “Here, that doesn’t happen.”
