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Tết Festival Kicks off Seattle Center’s 25th Anniversary of Festál

Tết Festival Kicks off Seattle Center’s 25th Anniversary of Festál

People gathered together to watch performers. Two people dressed in a dragon costume.
Tet Festival – Dragon image by David Conger

Festival Celebrates Vietnamese Lunar New Year on February 12 and 13 with an Assortment of Events at Seattle Center

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SEATTLE – Seattle Center Festál – with the theme Where the World Gathers – kicks off its 25th anniversary with Tết in Seattle, celebrating Vietnamese Lunar New Year on Feb. 12th and 13th, from noon to 6 p.m. with a series of indoor and outdoor activities for all ages at the Seattle Center Armory, Fisher Pavilion, and the International Fountain.

The free public festival returns as an in-person event following last year’s virtual celebration, providing a glimpse into the rich Vietnamese culture through amazing art, food, and music, as well as age-old and contemporary cultural traditions. The engaging two-day event is produced by Tết in Seattle, a volunteer-based community organization, which honors the culture of Vietnamese and Vietnamese Americans in the Pacific Northwest.

“This festival provides our community with a great opportunity to learn more about the Vietnamese culture and traditions, and to join in the fun,” said Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell. “Events like this allow us to embrace ethnic diversity and cultivate a deeper awareness, understanding and respect for the cultures that contribute to the vibrancy of our city, the region, and the world.”

The opening ceremony on Saturday features an LED video program, followed by two days of programming including hands-on kids’ arts and crafts, awe-inspiring lion dancing, firecrackers, photo booths, gift booths, art installations, performances, a new beer garden, and a curated áo dài fashion show – as well as free educational activity packets and “goodie” bags for kids.

Tết in Seattle also includes a comprehensive health fair (noon – 4 p.m.) robust with Vietnamese interpretive services, Hepatitis screening/vaccines, COVID booster immunizations, a mammogram van, cholesterol screening, osteoporosis screening, flu shots, reproductive education sessions, ask-a-doctor service, and free at-home COVID rapid tests.

The festival will conclude with fashion shows on Sunday evening, including a bridal fashion show and a children’s fashion show.

This festival is the first in a series of festivals put on by 24 cultural organizations that Seattle Center will host over the course of 2022.

About Tết History

Tết occurs on the first day of the Lunar New Year, typically in late January or early February, and is celebrated for three to five days. During this period, families reunite and put aside the past year’s struggles and pray for blessings in the year to come. Homes are cleaned, fresh clothes are donned, and streets are decorated in preparation for Tết. In every home, altars are set up to welcome ancestors with a full spread of Vietnamese dishes.

About Tết Festival

Tết in Seattle was formed by four Vietnamese organizations invested in celebrating and preserving traditional Vietnamese culture in the Seattle community. The groups hoped to host an event which would unite the Vietnamese community and introduce that community to the greater Seattle area. Observance of the Lunar New Year, Tết Nguyên Đán, presented the perfect opportunity to do so. Information on Tết in Seattle is available at https://www.tetinseattle.org/ and http://www.seattlecenter.com/events/featured-events/festal/tet-in-seattle, as well as on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.

About Seattle Center Festál

Seattle Center Festál, celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2022, highlights the culturally rich communities which help shape the character and course of our region. This unique and highly entertaining series of 24 ethnic cultural festivals on weekends from February through November provides a forum for cultural groups to come together where they can share their stories with the greater community and the world. The series began in 1997 to provide a central place for festivals to invite the public to join in their cultural expressions and heritage. Seattle Center Festál is produced with the generous support of 4Culture, City of Seattle, and Seattle Center Foundation. Festál is also part of the ArtsFund Cultural Partners Network.

About Seattle Center

Connect to the extraordinary at Seattle Center, an active civic, arts, and family gathering place in the core of our region. More than 30 cultural, educational, sports and entertainment organizations which reside on the grounds, together with a broad range of public and community programs, create thousands of events on the 74-acre campus and attract more than 12 million visitors each year. At Seattle Center, part of Uptown Arts & Cultural District and home to Climate Pledge Arena, our purpose is to create exceptional events, experiences, and environments that delight and inspire the human spirit to build stronger communities. Activities at the Center generate $1.864 billion in business activity and $631 million in labor income. 

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