Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company Lunar New Year Gala: Year of the Horse Celebration
5:30 – 8:30PM
The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, the renowned international touring dance company founded by Chinese American choreographer Nai-Ni Chen and now led by Artistic Director Greta Campo and Executive Director Andy Chiang, announced their 2026 Lunar New Year Gala: Year of the Horse Celebration on Thursday, February 26, 2026 from 5:30–8:30pm at DiMenna Center for Classical Music, 450 West 37th Street, NYC. Tickets start at $250 and can be purchased at https://www.nainichen.org/yearofthehorsegala/.
Join for an intimate evening bridging legacy and future, featuring cocktails, modern Asian cuisine by the chefs of Saffron59, festive conversation with artists and friends, and a vibrant Lunar New Year of the Red Fire Horse. The night includes performances of festive traditional dances such as the Lion Dance and Mongolian dance, as well as instrumental music, and features special guests Lori Tan Chinn (Awkwafina is Nora From Queens, Orange is the New Black…), Perry Yung (Warrior, The Knick, 3 Body Problem…), Jamie Guan (Monkey King, Flower Drum Song, The King and I…), and a performance by the Ahn Trio with Tae Hong Park of their upcoming single WSP x 11 with multimedia artist Vijay Rajkumar.
There will also be a silent auction of traditional and contemporary arts and crafts. Space is limited; celebrate and help sustain Nai-Ni Chen’s legacy of community and educational programs, the creation of new works, as well as support for emerging Asian American artists. The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Inc. is a tax-exempt 501©(3) organization; $100 of each guest ticket is tax-deductible.
About the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company:
The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company is a rare Asian American woman-led professional touring company with programs for educational settings, community organizations, and mainstage venues. The Company’s mission is to be a premier provider of innovative cultural experiences that reflect the inspiring hope and energy of the immigrant’s journey. It was founded with the vision that the journey of crossing cultures and adapting to a new home provides endless inspirations and opportunities for creative expressions that can enrich the human experience. Each one of the company’s work is aimed to increase the visibility of the struggle, triumph, despair, and joy of this experience. The Company’s productions provide authentic experiences and bring forth issues of identity, authenticity, and equality. The Company’s worldwide touring is represented by Red Shell Management led by Edward Schoelwer.
For more information on Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, please visit www.nainichen.org.
About Nai-Ni Chen:
Nai-Ni Chen (1959-2021) was a legendary choreographer who worked in New Jersey/New York area professionally for over 30 years since coming to the U.S. in 1982. She has built a diverse repertoire of over 80 original works and toured to major venues in the U.S. and international festivals in 12 countries around the world. A cross-cultural choreographer who aims to bring audience across the cultural boundaries, she has developed unique movement and choreographic styles that reflect the grace and splendor of the Chinese cultural traditions and the dynamic spirit of modern dance that she acquired in New York from luminaries such as Mary Anthony, Bertram Ross, Doris Rudko and Patricia Rowe.
Nai-Ni Chen has received multiple Choreographer Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She has been a principal affiliate of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and was a resident artist of the Harlem School of the Arts. Her contribution to the immigrant cultural experience has been honored by OCA and the International Institute. Commissions have come from the Joyce Theater Foundation, the Lincoln Center Institute, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Towson University, Dancing in the Streets, New Jersey Ballet, Ballet Met, and the Cleveland Dancing Wheels. Nai-Ni is currently in residence in New Jersey City University creating a new dance program for the university in collaboration with the Joffrey Ballet School as well as pioneering a program with the University’s Laboratory School for children with multiple disabilities.