THE PALAZZO TO BRING TRADITIONAL ‘LANTERN FESTIVAL’ TO LAS VEGAS
Cultural Festival Celebrates End of Chinese New Year with Party; Promise of Fortune and ‘Everlasting’ Love
The Venetian and The Palazzo announce the first Las Vegas Lantern Festival, celebrating the end of Chinese New Year. Guests will be treated to a whimsical evening of traditions and fun, including promises of good fortune and love to those who attend. The event, sometimes called “Chinese Moon Festival,” will feature traditional dim sum, Chinese-inspired cocktails, and entertainment.
On Saturday, Feb. 23, from 7 to 9 p.m., the Lantern Festival will take place under 28 majestic lanterns hanging throughout The Palazzo Waterfall Atrium, among a traditional reflecting pool full of oranges. Guests will also be surrounded by the resort’s popular Chinese New Year art installation and décor.
Legend says the Lantern Festival is a time to celebrate and promote positive relationships between families and friends. The festival can also be a time for finding love and a lifelong companion.
“The Lantern Festival is a perfect opportunity for an evening of amazing food, drinks, and entertainment,” said Sebastien Silvestri, vice president of food and beverage at The Venetian and The Palazzo. “We are fortunate to have some of the world’s best restaurants and lounges at the resort, and Chinese New Year is a great time to highlight ZINE and our festive cocktails. Our stunning Waterfall Atrium is a gorgeous space and will make this event unforgettable.”
Throughout the atrium, several dim sum tables will showcase different varieties of the customary Lantern Festival rice balls, provided by the award-winning ZINE restaurant at The Palazzo. Some Asian cultures consume the rice ball in a savory soup as a meal, while others use them as small sweet snacks and desserts. The significance of the rice ball is its circular shape, signifying a never-ending line of family togetherness.
The night will feature four custom cocktails, including the signature Jaina. This cocktail was created by Fusion Latin Mixology Bar mixologists Wendy Verdel-Hodges and Cynthya Halog, who were inspired by a number of exotic ingredients after walking through an Asian market one night. Other signature cocktails include the Beautiful Flower, Sleeping Dragon, and the Sweet Song.
The Beijing Trio will be the featured entertainment of the night. The trio is known for their traditional Chinese music from ancient and folkloric to contemporary.
Tickets, which retail for $48.88, are on sale now at any Venetian | Palazzo box office, online at Venetian.com and Palazzo.com or at the festival.
THE PALAZZO WATERFALL ATRIUM FEATURES MASSIVE ART INSTALLATION
To commemorate the Year of the Snake, the resort’s floral and horticulture department worked with a team of 77 artists and artisans from around the world, and consulted with a Feng Shui master, to produce the massive animated art installation. This colossal structure towers 38 feet above guests as they walk through the Waterfall Atrium, and features a giant peach tree and animated snake.
“Chinese New Year is such a special event to our guests, that constructing and designing something that’s not only authentic, but in grand Las Vegas fashion was important,” said Dana Beatty, director of floral and horticulture for The Venetian and The Palazzo. “We took into account specifics to bring luck in 2013, such as length, color, and gender of the snake, but made it a spectacle our guests will never forget.”
The art installation features Sophie Chow, a whimsical blue snake twisted throughout a giant peach tree. She is 98-feet long, with animated features including blinking eyes, a darting tongue and a head that moves side to side. Her face is intentionally juvenile to pay tribute to the birth of a new year.
Sophie’s home is a giant peach tree that towers over the atrium at 38-feet tall and 28-feet wide. There are 8,800 blossom vines on the tree, adorned with approximately 193,600 flowers. Hung throughout the tree are 28 custom dancing lanterns. Also, traditional I Ching coins, representing an abundance of wealth, sit amidst the snake and Lalique statues of The Palazzo. According to the Feng Shui master, it is recommended that guests walk clockwise around the tree and snake display three times to bring blessings of Heaven, Earth, and Mankind upon them.
The west garden is complete with rocks, plants and metals, representing earth elements and the east garden embodies water to represent Yin and Yang, the ancient Chinese philosophy of polar opposites being interconnected and interdependent.
The gardens and entrances to both resorts are adorned with fresh bamboo, citrus trees, Coleus, maidenhair ferns, and peachy pink Calandivas to accent the color of the feature tree. Suspended from the atrium ceilings are six foot, hand-loomed brocade silk and jade gold and red lanterns, which signify the lives of those around them to always be bright.
CELEBRATE CHINESE NEW YEAR WITH A FEAST FIT FOR AN EMPEROR
Chef Simon To of ZINE Noodles Dim Sum has created a special, limited menu to celebrate Chinese New Year.
Guests will find a variety of authentic dishes on the special restaurant menu including Firecracker Manila Clams infused with Chinese white wine, fish paste, and spicy roasted pepper; and Winner’s Daily Soup, which is a must-have for all casino players.
The Jaina cocktail, served in a martini glass, mixes lemon grass-infused G Saki, Gogi Bery infused Absolut vodka, lotus root syrup, lemon juice, Chinese bitters and Dragon fruit, which was the inspiration for the cocktail’s name. The different infusions within the cocktail evoke the harmony between the earth and the fruit. The Jaina cocktail is only available at Fusion Latin Mixology Bar in The Palazzo throughout Chinese New Year.
Share Your Lantern Festival and Chinese New Year Experiences
Hashtag: #LanternFestival #CNYPalazzo
Twitter Accounts: @PalazzoVegas, @VenetianVegas
