By Eleanor Wilson
Since its establishment in 2021, members of the Edelweiss Casey Choir have routinely hopped onto zoom every Saturday to engage their vocal chords through a range of traditional Chinese and Western tunes.
While the rehearsals may have started as a way to remain connected in an uncertain, isolated period for all, for the past six months, the choir’s attention has been tightly fixed on rehearsing for their first public performance.
At Hallam Community Theatre on Saturday 4 June, the culmination of the group’s hard work and determination blossomed, in a colourful and cheerful display of Chinese culture, celebrating one of the largest Chinese holidays – the Dragon Boat Festival.
Supported by funds from the Department of Multicultural Affairs, the performance from the 40 members of the choir included storytelling, chorus songs, duets and solos of various local Chinese Operas, poem recitations and instrumental ensembles, before concluding with an appropriate rendition of Edelweiss, which, of course, the choir is named after.
Led by director Dr Emily Hu, associate director Lily Xu and associate director Iris Shen, Edelweiss Casey Choir has performed three virtual performances over the past year, but Saturday’s performance was the first opportunity for the choir to perform in front of a live crowd, which included Chinese community leaders from across Melbourne.
“Going to do such a professional theatre performance is a rich and rewarding experience for the members of Edelweiss Casey Choir,“ said a choir spokesperson.
“Along with the Spring Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day, and Mid-Autumn Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival is one of the four top traditional Chinese festivals.“
Celebrated around late May or June each year, The Dragon Boat Festival commemorates the death of Chinese poet, patriotic minister and Chinese National Hero Qu Yuan.
Alongside traditional songs and poems, the choir also incorporated customs of the Dragon Boat Festival into their performance, sharing parcels of sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves and sachets of scented herbs and spices which are worn to ward off bad spirits and diseases.
