The ninth Chinatown Arts Festival wraps up this week with an art show made from mooncake tins, and the Museum of Chinese in America fills the days in between with storytelling, a walking tour and a family puppet workshop. Here is what is happening in Chinatown from Thursday, October 22, through Tuesday, October 27.

Thursday: Echoes of Arrival at MOCA

At 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 22, MOCA's performance series presents Echoes of Arrival: Becoming, in which seven immigrant artists from Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago tell their migration stories through narration, poetry, music, dance and stand-up. The program was conceived by Dennis Yueh-Yeh Li, and Thursday's cast includes Shan Y. Chuang, Nikkiesha N. McLeod, Timmy Ong, Nedelka Sotelo and Fang Tseng. Tickets are $20, or $15 for MOCA members. Another performance is scheduled for November 6.

Saturday morning: a walk through Chinatown's history

MOCA's public walking tour, Chinatown: A Walk through History, leaves from the museum lobby at 215 Centre Street at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 24, and runs until 1 p.m. The route covers about a mile to a mile and a half and traces the area from Werpoes, a Lenape settlement, to today's Chinatown, with stops at some of the neighborhood's oldest streets, a park, a church, its oldest general store and an early eatery. Tickets are $25, $20 for seniors 55 and over and students, and free for children under 5, with museum admission included. The tour is recommended for ages 12 and up, and booking ahead is advised.

Saturday afternoon: shadow puppets with the Monkey King

From 2 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, MOCA's family workshop, led by teaching artist Yu Rong, has children making shadow puppets based on Ed Young's illustrations of the Monkey King and the White Bone Demon. The workshop is free with admission, which is $15 for adults and $10 for seniors and students. New York City residents can pay what they wish in person with ID.

It ties to MOCA's current exhibition, Ed Young's Bright Worlds, the first United States retrospective of the Caldecott Medal winning illustrator of Lon Po Po, who died in 2023. The show includes original art from 15 projects, along with sketchbooks and family photographs, and runs through January 24, 2027.

Sunday: a free ribbon and fan dance class

At 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 25, the Red Silk Dancers and teacher Margaret Yuen lead a free one-hour open class in traditional Chinese dance with ribbons and fans, at the volleyball courts at the north end of Seward Park near Essex Street. No experience is needed.

Tuesday: MOONSquare opens and the festival closes

From 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, October 27, Think!Chinatown holds the Chinatown Arts Festival closing party and the opening of MOONSquare at its studio at 1 Pike Street. MOONSquare is the group's annual open-call show of art made from mooncake tins, and the works go up for auction. The night includes drinks and desserts, a live doodle jam and a DJ set from Chinatown Records, as the organization heads toward its 10th birthday. Guests RSVP with a donation. This year's festival was curated by Yin Kong, Amy Chin and Ling Tang, with a poster by printmaker Jenny Liu.

Getting around

MOCA is at 215 Centre Street, near the Canal Street station served by the 6, J, Z, N, Q, R and W. The Think!Chinatown studio at 1 Pike Street is closest to the F at East Broadway.

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