Glow in the park: Chinese Lantern Fest opens in Franklin Square

Starting this weekend, thousands of LED lights and 28 colorful Chinese lantern displays - larger-than-life dragons, pandas, lotus flowers, and pagodas that are illuminated from within, and in some cases, automated - will set Franklin Square aglow as the Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival opens its seven-week engagement.

The traveling light show, which originates in China and has touched down previously in a few other U.S. cities, is one of several red-letter events marking the 10th anniversary of the once-blighted park's rebirth as a thriving hub of city life. It runs through June 12.

The festival includes the typical lanterns that hang from trees. But it's the huge illuminated animals, flowers, and traditional Chinese structures that are its star attractions. Visitors at lantern festivals in other cities produced by the same promoter, organizers said, have been especially taken with the 200-foot dragon, four-story pagoda, and giant panda.

In addition, Chinese dancers, acrobats, and musicians will perform, and artisans will have booths throughout the square demonstrating traditional crafts, including paper making, palm weaving, edible sugar dragons, and Chinese paintings of visitors' names. Chinese food will be sold, and on weekends, there will be a beer garden.

Starting May 3, traditional "face-changing shows" will become a nightly feature. Performers wearing bright masks dance to fast music, changing masks with a quick flick of a fan or a hand or a head turn.

Admission to the square will remain free during the day, but during the festival's run, tickets are required for entry after 6 p.m.

A decade ago, Franklin Square was the least-used of the city's original five green spaces, set aside by William Penn. The 71/2-acre parcel had become a place for the homeless to gather and for drug users to meet up.

After a three-year, $6.5 million renovation, the square reopened in 2006 with two playgrounds, a carousel, a mini-golf course, and a refurbished fountain.

Residents of nearby Chinatown supported the park's redevelopment and helped the square come back to life after the upgrades. (Fun fact: The carousel includes a Chinese dragon, along with horses, as a nod to that early support.)

So it's fitting to have a traditional Chinese cultural event as part of the anniversary celebration, said Amy Needle, president and chief executive officer of Historic Philadelphia, which operates the site.

"As soon as Franklin Square reopened, Chinatown residents flocked to it for a wide variety of uses," Needle said. "In the early mornings, there is a regular group who does tai chi in the square. The area day-care centers bring the children to the two playgrounds every day all year long."

Since reopening, Franklin Square has hosted the annual Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month Festival.

The square's 10th anniversary celebrations will also include expanded July Fourth and Halloween festivities, outdoor movie nights, and other programing.

John Chin, executive director of the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp., said his organization was thrilled to see the welcome extended here to the Chinese Lantern Festival, since lantern fests are an important part of life in China. "Chinatown has been here 146 years," he said, "and its cultural identity and culture are stronger today than ever before."

In China, the festivals originated in about 907 in Zigong, Sichuan Province, during the Tang Dynasty.

They're traditionally held to mark the end of Chinese New Year, which this year was Feb. 8. The Philadelphia iteration waited until April to take advantage of spring's better weather.

While the smaller lanterns in the visiting show have been shipped to Philadelphia from China, most of the larger pieces are handmade on site. Artisans from China have been working in the city since March, said Jessie Li, on-site manager for Sichuan Tianyu, the China company that puts on the festival.

The lanterns, she said, "share Chinese culture with visitors, who may not be familiar with our history and culture."

Philadelphians seem eager to share that history and culture, Chin said. Among immigrant residents of Chinatown, the lantern festival is "generating a feeling of anticipated nostalgia," he said.

"This reminds me of a grandmother who was sitting on her stoop in Chinatown soaking in the excitement of the first Night Market Chinatown, in 2011," he said.

"She said, 'Thank you for organizing this night market. I have not experienced night market since I emigrated from my home in China.' "

Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival opens tonight and runs through June 12 at Franklin Square, Sixth and Race Streets.

Hours: 6-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 6-10 p.m. Sundays to Thursdays.
Admission to Franklin Square is free during the day.

Tickets: Entry Fridays and Saturdays is via timed ticket on-the-hour. (Not timed other days.) Adults, $17; seniors, $15; children 2-17, $12 (under 2 free). Available at the festival entrance or online.