Tickets are now available for Gung Haggis Fat Choy: Toddish McWong's Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner.

(please note.... this article is for  2006

-  tix for 2007 dinner will be available soon)

January 22, 2006
Sunday
5pm reception
6pm dinner start

Call the Firehall Arts Centre Box Office 604-689-0926. 
Order and charge by credit card.

Advance Price:
$60 Premium Seating with wine
$50 Regular Seating
Children 12 and under - 50%
Tickets will be mailed out - with map and assigned seating

All seats receive subscription to Ricepaper Magazine ($20 value)

After January 7th:
$70 Premium Seating with wine
$60 Regular
Tickets will be held at Will Call

There is a $3 handling charge per ticket to the patron.

I have chosen to use Firehall Arts Centre Box Office for ticket distribution because:

1) This event has grown too big to handle tickets on a volunteer basis

2) The Firehall Arts Centre is committed to culturally diverse contemporary theatre.

3) They can handle credit card purchases, making it easier for everybody, instead of mailing in cheques.

4) I believe the Firehall Theatre Society is a wonderful organization, and I encourage people to attend some of their productions.

For more information contact Todd Wong 778-846-7090
or e-mail gunghaggis at yahoo.ca

A Holiday in Everything But Name: Chinese New Year is now celebrated locally like never before - is it time to make it official?

Vancouver Sun - February 12 - page D1 & D19

The Vancouver Sun's Kevin Griffin addresses issues around the evolution of Chinese New Year in Vancouver and Canada.  He asks the question: Should Chinese New Year become an official holiday?

Griffin also cites how "the uniquely local Canadian banquet Gung Haggis Fat Choy that mixes and matches Scottish and Chinese New Year's traditions continues to grow and threatens to morph into its own festival."

Griffin interviews Dr. Jan Walls and explores the history of the Vancouver Chinatown parade that originally emerged in the 1960's, faded then re-emerged in 1974.  He then addresses Toddish McWong's Gung Haggis Fat Choy and its spin-offs. I have only included the parts about Gung Haggis Fat Choy and Todd Wong.

"Another multicultural tradition that's 100 percent local is Gung Haggis Fat Choy, the creation of fifth generation Chinese-Canadian Todd Wong.  The postmodern mix of chinese New Year and Robbie Burns Day started seven years ago when Wong invited 16 friends for dinner.  Two weeks ago, about 600 people turned out for a feast that included Haggis Wun-tun in maple syrup at Chinatown's Floata Restaurant.

This past year, Wong added something new to the mix: The first annual Gung Haggis Fat Choy Canadian Games at SFU that started off with a Highland dance, a tune by a bagpiper and a Lion Dance.  The main event was dragon cart racing with teams sporting names such as Haggis Hooligans and Fat Choy Chunkies.

Crystal Buchan had the honor of steering the winning team.  At 20, she's in her second year in the theatre-finarts program.

Asked if Chinese New Year should be a holiday, Buchan said, "Sure, why not?."

Todd Wong - aka 'Toddish McWong' - isn't nearly as certain.

'It depends on the will of the people." Wong said.  "It's hard to say at this point."

In part, Wong's perspective comes from his own family history.  He's a descendent of Rev. Chan Yu Tan, his great-great-grandfather who came to B.C. from Hong Kong in 1896 when immigrants were actively discouraged and had to pay a head tax of $50 (later increased to $500).  Wong recalls growing up in the 1960's and 1970's when Chinese culture was maginalized.

Wong's family history spans the historiy of discrimination towards Chinese immigrants and the complete prohibition of immigration from china from 1923 to 1947 with the Chinese Exculsion Act.  Because the emphasis was on fitting in when Wong was growing up int he late 1960's, his fmaily never celebrated chinese New Year.

He believes that the next challenge for Chinese New Year is not only to integrate the old and new Chinese Canadian communities but to make it a uniquely multicultual and Canadian event.

"That's where the future lies," Wong said. "Canada is an evolving culture.  Lunar New Year will continue to grow and be inclusive - not just limited to Chinese."

For more of Kevin Griffin's story in the February 12 Vancouver Sun - pick up a copy or check www.vancouversun.com

Vancouver food critic Mia Stainsby, listed Gung Haggis Fat Choy in her Cover story article for today's Vancouver Sun's "Queue" Arts & Entertainment summary.

In an article titled Best new restaurants 2004: Rising culinary stars showcase Vancouver's unique blend of multicultural cuisines, Mia writes: 

"Food is like edible culture.  Take a look at the best restaurants that opened this year.  They tell us we're no longer a city of immigrants with a disconnect between mainstream and ethnic populations.

"Vancouver restaurants today, like the city itself, are more a melting pot than a mosaic of many cultures.  International cuisines have mixed and merged into a seamless whole, and like the stitching on a baseball, there's no beginning or end to it.  What's been happening is quite amazing and adds cosmopolitan flair to the city.

"Ethnic restaurants are not only chameleons in the mainstream, they're now at the forefront of ideas and trends, blurring the lines forever, particularly Asian ones...  So-called western-style menus are woven through and through with Asian notes and riffs.  Blended cuisines are often referred to as 'fusion,' but it's gone beyond self-conscious borrowings from ethnic cuisines.  It's a cuisine of its own - Vancouver cuisine."

Stainsby goes on to write: "And look at the success of the annual Gung Haggis Fat Choy celebrations, the food-centred fusion of Chinese New Year and Robbie Burns Day.  Haggis wun tun symbolizes this eccentric culinary union.  Only in Vancouver.  The main event will be dinner at Floata restaurant on January 30 and 700 party-goers are expected. (See www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com)"

Stainsby mentions us after introducing Shiru Bay / Chopstick Cafe's natto ice cream (a sticky mix of fermented soy beans and ice cream), and Zakkushi Chacoal Grill's ome bushi sour cocktail (Japanese vodka, soda and crushed sour plum.)

Wow - we are in great company, and we are not even a resturant!  We even got mentioned before Clove restaurant's butter chicken and kafta balls, Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine, Also Lounge and Chambar.

see Mia Stainsby's December 21, 2004 article about Gung Haggis Fat Choy titled Have a taste of 2004.

After my appearance on CBC TV's The National, of course there are things I wished I could have said.

"Todd - tell me how Gung Haggis Fat Choy has expanded," asked Peter Mansbridge.

actual said - "The dinner has expanded to expecting 700 people this year."

should have said - "We are expanding beyond the dinner event into mainstream events.  We have been invited to be part of the rejuvenated First Night Vancouver.  This will be an incredible event in downtown Vancouver's Theatre District, held at QE Plaza, CBC Plaza and Library Square. Performing with me will be Silk Road Music's Qiu Xia He & Andre Thibault, Dragon River Shadow Puppet Theatre's musicians Karen Wong & Zhongxi Yu.  We will be creating a family oriented show of audience singalongs, cross-over music, story telling - all celebrating Scottish Hogmanay and Chinese New Year on First Night.

We will have the 2nd annual Gung Haggis Fat Choy World Poetry Night at the Vancouver Public - a free event of music and poetry featuring poet Fred Wah - a Governor General's Award for Poetry winner.  This is done in partnership with the World Poetry Series at the Vancouver Public Library, organized and co-hosted with Ariadne Sawyer and Alejandro Mujica.  We will also be featuring musician songwriter Joe MacDonald, poets Dugald Christie and Shirley Sue-A-Quan.  And I, personally, will perform one of the songs I have written for a planned Children's album of songs celebrating Gung Haggis Fat Choy - incorporating Scottish Hogmany, Robbie Burns Day, Chinese New Year and Multiculturalism or Interculturalism.

We are creating the inaugural SFU Gung Haggis Fat Choy Highland Games at Simon Fraser University - and event to draw on SFU's adopted Scottish heritage and the large Asian student population, to bring the university population together for a series of intramural fun & games + music performances.

Terry "Bear" Varga - owner of Bear Kilts, was very happy - nay - extremely happy, that I was able to mention "This kilt is a Maple Leaf tartan, just made by my good friend "Bear" at Bear Kilts, in the short time I had speaking with Peter Mansbridge.  This also rated a mention on the web forum X Marks the Spot - a web site about everything KILTS.

And my website!  Peter, www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com is getting thousands of hits now, and growing so fast.  I have now decided to use my blog to document and record Asian-Canadian and intercultural events in Vancouver, as I can attend.  I just reviewed the Vancouver Opera's production of Madama Butterfly, as well as a small community event, Harry Aoki's First Friday Forum.  All are important to the intercultural and cultural fusion dynamics of Vancouver.  There are many websites that list events, but very few that actually provide reviews.  So that is what my goal is, to share how engage in intercultural multicultural Vancouver, by sharing my personal adventures and events.

Peter Mansbridge meets Toddish McWong.  Gung Haggis Fat Choy on CBC TV's The National. Picture of me with Peter to come soon...

Roland has already provided a table of contents for new readers listing the essentials of Gung Haggis Fat Choy.  The topics on the left column is something I am just learning to use, it will become more complete as the weeks progress. 

The film clips: 

We filmed some shots last Monday - myself with accordion and lion head, performing music with Joe McDonald on bagpipes, and Harish Kumar on drum + eating haggis wun tun and haggis spring rolls at the Floata Restaurant in Vancouver Chinatown.

Also shown were clips of a musical variety special titled "Gung Haggis Fat Choy" - yes, CBC TV in Vancouver bought the rights from me to use the name, and produced a stunning multicultural tv special.  It was a greatly entertaining 30 minute show produced by Moyra Rodger of Out To See Productions, that had Monty Pythonesque touches with cartoon sequences.  It was so good that it was nominated for two Leo awards for best TV work in BC:  Best Musical/Variety and Best direction for Musical/Variety.

Rae Hull, CBC TV regional director, was the executive producer who invited me in for a meeting in July 2003 and said, "Todd, I think it's time to take Gung Haggis Fat Choy up to the next level." And voila!  A script is written, studios are booked and music videos are made.

Anyways... from the TV special, clips featured The Paper Boys, Vancouver based celtic folk-rockers, Chinese flautist Ji Min Pan, bagpiper Tim Fanning - all shot in the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Chinese Classical Gardens in Vancouver.  Other segments not shown on The National featured Silk Road Music, George Sampoudis, and Joe McDonald's band Brave Waves, as well as the origins of Toddish McWong and Gung Haggis Fat Choy.

The Chinese New Year Dinner featured Joe McDonald in full kilt dress with bear skin hat (or is it ostrich feathers), singer Ula Shines joining my parents, grandmother, and friends.  That was a shot of me holding a plate of a large haggis.

Gung Haggis Fat Choy, the tv special, was proposed to the Toronto CBC head office to run nationally for January with an expanded format, but sadly it was turned down.  If Canadians would like to see the award nominated Gung Haggis Fat Choy 2004 tv special, then please call your local CBC station and ask them to play it for Robbie Burns Day on January 25th, or for Chinese New Year which will fall on Feb 9, in 2005.

It's good.  It is so good, that I believe all Canadians will absolutely love it.  Everybody I spoke to had real positive things to say about it, and it made them LAUGH!  It really captured the spirit of the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinners.  It pokes fun at stereotypes, it shows how Canadians borrow and cross cultures easily.  And most importantly, it shows some of the history of Scots and Chinese cultural traditions in Canada, as well as how we can laugh at ourselves (very important Canadian trait).  The next version would push the boundaries further... We came up with so many great ideas, that it is a shame not to see them realized. Imagine Sara McLachlan performing with her husband/drummer on Indian tabla drums... Loreena McKennit performing with Silk Road Music... hmmm... more dreams....

It was good to get the Gung Haggis Fat Choy voice on national TV.  It was a lot of work, I think we did about 3 hours of filming etc at Floata Restaurant last week in addition to about 4 hours in conversations, meetings and e-mails.  All for about 3 1/2 to 4 minutes on air.  I will try to put a transcript on this blog - hopefully for tomorrow, as well as answer questions that readers may have.  Special thanks to National producer Sarah Quadri and reporter Eve Savory for all their hard work.

Oh - before I forget...  My kilt is made by Terry "Bear" Varga of Bear Kilts.  He started up his company only two years ago.  It is a synthetic polyviscose material - light, inexpensive and perfect for dragon boat paddling.  The tartan is called "Maple Leaf" - we are adopting it as the official Gung Haggis Fat Choy tartan.  And... instead of buckles, Terry uses... (dare I say it?)... velcro!

How is Gung Haggis expanding?  In every way possible, and never before imagined!

We will be featured at First Night Vancouver at the QE Plaza, Dec 31.  Performing with me will be Silk Road Music's Qiu Xia He and Andrea Thibault, Dragon River Shadow Puppet Theatre's Karen Wong and Zhongxi Yu, and hopefully Battery Opera's David McIntosh and Lee Su-Feh.  We promise a night full of family entertainment, featuring audience singalongs, storytelling, music and fun.

We will be at the Vancouver Public Library on Jan 17, Gung Haggis Fat Choy World Poetry Night - hosted with my friend Ariadne Sawyer and Alejandro Mujica - featuring poet Fred Wah, bagpiper Joe McDonald, Dugald Christie, and Shirley Sue-A-Quan.

So... thanks for tuning in and checking our blog.  Please make your comments and we will do our best to address them and answer your questions.

Slainte, Toddish