Bridging Creative Connections at Pao Arts Center’s 5th Anniversary Celebration
Co-Chairs, Nancy Wang Adams & Eleanor Pao
October 13th, 2022
Thursday, October 13, 2022 - Braving thunderstorms and traffic, guests gathered at Pao Arts Center for an evening of connection and celebration of the center’s accomplishments in its first five years of operation, including:
Showcasing over 500 local and national AAPI artists
Engaging over 25,000 visitors
Hosting over 500 workshops, performances, trainings, classes, and exhibits
The night began with a surprise visit from Mayor Michelle Wu, who has long been a fierce supporter of the arts. “Boston is home to one of the most historic Chinatowns in the country, and over the past five years the Pao Arts Center has played a crucial role in showcasing the voices of our Asian American communities,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “Our entire city benefits from making the arts accessible and inclusive, and the Pao Arts Center is a treasure reflecting our community’s cultural legacy and modern day brilliance.”
The evening’s program included a special erhu performance by Pao Arts Center’s first Artist-In-Residence, Shaw Pong Liu, as well as the first audience performance of cellist Leo Eguchi’s newest project, UNACCOMPANIED (premiering at Pao Arts Center on Saturday, October 22). As a featured composer on Leo Eguchi’s upcoming UNACCOMPANIED performance, Shaw Pong also invited Leo to the stage for a spontaneous duet performance.
The Celebration’s menu included Chinatown restaurateur Doris Huang’s famous Peking Duck, as well as elegant appetizers, entrees, and desserts from local restaurants, Crave Chinatown, Cafe Darq, and Cafe Corner.
At the end of the night, guests each took home a piece of Pao Arts Center’s ongoing Experience Chinatown Art Festival in the form of limited edition greeting cards featuring window murals from this year’s visual artists.
Pao Arts Center’s 5th Anniversary Celebration was truly a night to remember and a beautiful culmination of the center’s impressive set of accomplishments within its first five years. Thank you so much to all of our generous sponsors and supporters who helped make the night possible. We are so excited for you all to join us as Pao Arts Center continues to be a premier creative hub for the Chinatown and AAPI artist communities.
Thanks to our generous sponsors and supporters, we raised $200,000 to make arts and culture more accessible to the Chinatown and immigrant community.
DIAMOND
Nancy W. Adams and Scott A. Schoen | Boger Family Foundation | Donna Egan | Marjie and Robert Kargman | Eleanor and Frank Pao | Laura Sen | Dr. Elaine Li Shiang and the MeiMei Dumpling Company | Peter and Rebecca Woo
GOLD
Leslie and Howard Appleby | Hsiu-Lan Chang | Joanne and Larry Cheng | Joe and Selina Chow | Ada Chu and Grant Geller | Lorrayne “Dina” Yen Chu and John H. Chu | Cecilia Sze | Lynn Dale and Frank Wisneski | Melody Pao and Manuel López Segura
SILVER
John Avery | Stephanie L. Brown | Ellie and Brian Chu | Deborah Coleman Diggins and Timothy Diggins | Stephanie Fan | Hannah and Jack Grove | Jeannette Hsu | Paul Reville and Julie Joyal | Nobuko Kuhn | Linda and Kraig Kupiec | Agustina and Yuchun Lee | York Lo and Rebecca Pearson Lo | Marianne and Richard Moscicki | Lisa Pierpont | The Rabb Family Foundations | Patty and Charles Ribakoff | Jill and Mitch Roberts | Marie and Mark Schwartz | Janet Wu | George Yip
BRONZE
Robert and Anne Bowen | Nadia Spellman | Susan Y. Friedman | Leader Bank | Janet Tobin | Cynthia Woo | Yu-Wen Wu
SUPPORTER
Susan Chinsen | Anne Hanford | Edwina A. Klünder | Betty Szeto | Pamela Yang | Joann Yung
Special thanks to: BCNC and Pao Arts Center staff | Catering To You | PEAK Event Services | Ashley Yung, Lighting Designer