"Hometown Henan" stunning New York Times Square New Year countdown event

Henan culture shines at the opening ceremony

Zhongyuan Network News (Zheng Bao all-media reporter Qin Hua/Wen Henan Provincial Party Committee Propaganda Department/photo) "5, 4, 3, 2, 1 ... Happy New Year!" As the giant crystal ball slowly descends, people from all over the world gathered in Times Square cheer to usher in 2022. On the evening of December 31, 2021, EST, following the change to online in 2020 due to the impact of the epidemic, the New York Times Square New Year Countdown event returned to offline for the first time. In the evening, Henan culture shone at the opening ceremony, bringing a unique Henan cultural feast to the global audience.

At 18:00 EST on December 31, 2021 (7:00 Beijing time on January 1, 2022), the Crystal Ball of the New Year Celebration in Times Square was lit up, officially opening the curtain on the 2022 New Year Countdown.

Huang Ping, Consul General of the People's Republic of China in New York, delivered a speech on the spot, and Liang Jieyi, Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Henan Province, delivered a video speech on behalf of Henan Province, jointly introducing China and Henan and sending New Year wishes to the global audience. The host broke the convention of introducing domestic participants in previous years, and spent nearly two minutes introducing Henan as an important birthplace of the Chinese nation and Chinese civilization with thick historical culture and magnificent mountains and rivers, and promoting Henan's cultural and tourism resources.

Next, a 6-minute Henan special cultural performance that integrates Taijiquan, Shaolin Kung Fu, Chinese Fan Dance and American Street Dance debuted, american dancers and Chinese dancers from New York presented a wonderful performance of Chinese and Western fusion for the audience, Tai Chi was strong and soft, Shaolin Kung Fu was tiger and tiger, and the fan dance had endless charm, which attracted continuous admiration.

At the opening ceremony, the Henan propaganda film was also specially played twice, and Henan 30 seconds once again amazed the world at the moment of great attention, and the symbols of Henan cultural tourism such as the Yellow River, Songshan Mountain, Yin Ruins, and Longmen Grottoes appeared in turn, pushing the activity to a climax.

After the opening ceremony, the Chinese Consul General in New York, the Chairman of the Times Square Alliance, and representatives of the New York State and New York City governments jointly presented Henan Province with the Special Contribution Award for U.S.-China Friendship and a commemorative crystal tablet engraved with Henan-NewYork Friendship.

The live broadcasting activities of the mainstream media in the United States such as the American Broadcasting Corporation have played a major role in promoting the province to tell the Chinese story and the colorful story of Henan in the new era, disseminate and promote the image of Henan, and add a bright color to the cultural exchanges between China and the United States under the current international situation.

Founded in 1904, the New Year's Countdown to the New York Times Square annually brings together people from all over the world to spend the Chinese New Year's Eve, with an average annual audience of more than 1 million and hundreds of millions of online viewers. From 2011 to 2019, Chinese elements continued to enter the Countdown to Times Square event. The event was Henan's first appearance in the New York Times Square New Year Countdown event.