Vancouver Notables is the ongoing interview series where “No Fun City” shows off. More like burlesque than a talent show, Vancouver Notables wants you doing what you do best, but with sequins on your nipples. Tell us who you are, what you’re doing that’s of note and why, oh why, are you rocking that boat?
Sad Mag cornered the team behind Vancouver’s new Chinatown Night Market and asked them all sorts of questions about the history of the Night Market, how it’s going to reemerge (re-surge!) this year, and the challenges they’ve faced in getting it there.
Alright, team: introduce yourselves!
ML: I’m Megan Lau. I’m Sad Mag alumni and family. I read, write and sometimes take pictures.
MG: I’m Michele Guimond. I work for a big organization by day doing marketing PR etc… but by night I like to use my marketing powers for good, connecting with people with a good idea that want it heard.
MF: I’m Michelle Fu. I’m an artist and designer, and the co-founder of 221A, a non-profit artist run centre based in Chinatown, Vancouver.
KT: I’m Ken Tsui. I’m a filmmaker and host of pop-up events around Vancouver. I currently have the honour of working with the Vancouver Chinatown Merchants’ Association as a program director for this year’s Chinatown Night Market.
HR: I’m Hannah Reinhart. I’m an arts administrator in Vancouver, and am thrilled to be able to say I’m a part of this crazy talented group.
TL: I’m Tannis Ling. I own Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie, which is a restaurant that sits on Keefer St. where the market happens every year. I’m the [Night Market’s] Managing Director.
ML: I grew up in Vancouver. As a kid, I went with my parents on their grocery trips in Chinatown every weekend. Back then, the neighbourhood was loud and alive. Those memories have a big place in my heart. I got to know the market around 2006, when I got involved with a magazine that was based in Chinatown. The Night Market meant we had tasty and affordable eats outside our door. When Ken asked me to join this team, I had to do it. This has been one of those rare opportunities to work with creative, generous and like-minded people.
HR: Ken recruited me to the team. We met about a year and a half ago when I was working in the neighbourhood, and I have always had a ton of interest in and admiration for his pop-up events and general zest for community building. I’d expressed this to him in the past, so I guess he knew I’d share his interest in bringing new life to the Night Market.
MG: Ken and I know each other through a shared love of food. Despite eating together for a couple of years we never really discussed the details of day jobs, of which mine happens to be marketing. Over a meal at Bao Bei (of course) he told me what he was planning for the market with Tannis. Seeing Ken turn most of what he touches into gold, including his pop up restaurants, I was excited to offer help with some marketing, social media, PR, etc. I am really excited by helping people get the message out about an idea that adds to the cultural landscape in Vancouver. This project was a great opportunity to get involved with a team of people dedicated and passionate about the same things.
MF: I’ve been actively working in Chinatown since 2008, and since then I’ve spent many nights working late into the evening. In the summer the Night Market is a welcome excuse for a stroll, a treat and the inevitable chance of running into a neighbour or friend. Moving here last year really cemented how much I love the neighborhood, and my desire to immerse myself even more increased. I’ve tried on numerous scales to create community engagement, and it’s a fun dilemma I’m constantly rethinking. Ken and I worked together once in the past, and have since kept an eye on each others’ projects (at least I did — is that creepy?), so when he approached me about working together again for the Night Market, he knew I’d be more than interested!
TL: I always knew that I wanted to open Bao Bei in Chinatown for the obvious reason that a Chinese restaurant belongs the best in Chinatown. I also loved the neighbourhood and felt that, unlike other areas of Vancouver, it had a gritty realness to it that I was attracted to and felt at home in. There’s also nothing handier than getting most of your produce, dry goods and smallware within a couple blocks of the restaurant.
When I opened the restaurant and realized that the night market was going to happen outside every summer, I couldn’t believe how lucky I had gotten with that location. I’ve always had a great love for markets and was excited to have the summer weekends on our street imbued with a sense of liveliness and fun. However, I think once the two night markets in Richmond opened up, a lot of business went over there and the market started to feel a bit sparse. My opinion was that there was no point for the Chinatown Night Market to compete with Richmond and that it should be its own entity, reflecting the emergence of a very exciting, young, entrepreneurial and creative spirit in the neighbourhood yet still preserving its cultural identity. I went to the Vancouver Chinatown Revitalization Committee (VCRC) and suggested the idea to give the night market an update which seemed in line with their mandate of bringing life back to the streets of Chinatown. They in turn introduced me to the Vancouver Chinatown Merchants’ Association who has organized the night market for the last 17 years, and welcomed me and a group of volunteers to facilitate this new vision.
What is the history behind the Chinatown Night Market?
KT: The Chinatown Night Market has been a summer cornerstone for the neighbourhood for almost 20 years. For years, the market was a bustling and full of energy. However, what was once a three-block market is now just a single block. Despite scaling down, the market still maintains a cultural significance to the city that the new market team is excited to be a part of it.
TL: This was also the first night market in North America.
Things have really changed in Chinatown; even in the last five years there’s been a huge turnover in the types of businesses and events that are making Chinatown their home. How is the Chinatown Night Market walking the line between old and new?
MF: This is exactly what got me interested in working with the Night Market this year. I wouldn’t say its been a turnover of businesses in the area; I’d rather say that there is more diversity side-by-side. Though we do have to be realistic about the changing neighbourhood, we can also be very sensitive to everyone living and working here. It’s something I’m very aware of, having been part of the initial change five years ago. So our main thing is to make sure that diversity and accessibility are at the top of the list. We’re not replacing traditional with new; we’re adding to it. We’re keeping it as affordable as it was before, but making it more engaging. We want the Night Market to be a place you can buy a plate of shrimp dumplings, then finish it off with homemade ice cream while listening to Chinese opera, or trying your hand at Hip Hop Karaoke.
Can you recall some of the challenges (overcome or not) that you’ve faced while organizing this endeavour?
HR: Time has been the big one. Annual summer festivals of this size usually take the entire year to plan, and we’ve been working since January (Ken and Tannis started a bit earlier). We’re playing catch up this year and looking forward to getting a head start on next year!
MG: I knew from the start that this was going to be a marketing challenge. How do you get people engaged with something that isn’t happening yet? It is hard to get people focused on an event for summer in the middle of a long, drizzly winter and spring. However, every week as ideas turned into concrete plans and so much amazing talent started signing up, it became clear we just needed a way to help people see what was coming. We are now covering the programming on the wesbite/ blog weekly and activating social media with announcements about what’s coming. Soon we will have a full program up for the summer. We have had so much great support from collaborators and press. Overall, when people hear about what we have planned they are super excited! It’s not hard to convince Vancouverites about the value of a new cultural event. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for announcements throughout the summer.
MF: Working with people from all different backgrounds! That’s been an enlightening challenge — working with different generations, cultural backgrounds, language barriers, different interest groups, and the list goes on…
TL: I’ve realized that creating something from the ground up like the restaurant is difficult but that trying to take an existing event and altering it after 18 years has its own set of challenges.
Okay, team stuff: complete the following “Mad Libs” with the appropriate activity/member of the team…
“Getting it done,” means getting great, crazy, overworked people on board.
Tannis’ cat always manages to make meetings about driving Ken crazy.
The absolute best answer to any question that anyone asks is always ”let me talk to the team about that and get back to you”.
What are you all most excited about right now?
HR: I think I’m most looking forward to seeing Rain City Chronicles perform on the stage. I just went to one of their events a few weeks ago on the theme of “Fame and Fortune,” and it blew me away.
MG: I am really excited about Hip Hop Karaoke hosted by HHKVan. Ken was saying these guys have been looking for way to make these nights accessible to a younger audience. To date, their nights have drawn huge crowds at legal age venues like Fortune Sound Club, but the market is now offering them a way to invite younger kids up on stage. I have no doubt this event is going to be huge.
MF: Outdoor films, and dumpling weekend! Who doesn’t want to know more and eat more dumplings?
ML: I’m with Michelle. Dumplings forever. It’s also going to be beautiful to see Keefer Street transformed and the neighbourhood bustling at night. I want to experience something like the vibrant Chinatown of the 1950s and 1960s that I’ve heard and read about.
KT: I’m excited to see Girls Rock Camp and Green Burrito Records’ band The Courtneys on share the stage. Nothing says summer jam more to me than The Courtneys’ “90210.” Am I allowed two? Screw it. Of course, I’m allowed. I can’t wait to shout “Warrrrrrriorrrrrs come out and playyyyyyyayyyayay” on the mic during our Street Fighter II: World Warrior tournament.
TL: New vendors! We have have a slew of new sellers with products that range from jewelry, laser cut crafts, vintage sunglasses, books, design magazines, ceramics, flowers, chocolate, ice cream sandwiches, and chutney. We also have a couple of collective stalls, one being run by the popular design blog Poppytalk, and the other by China Cloud, a neighbourhood studio/gallery space, that are planning to showcase different artists every week for the entire summer.
The Night Market begins May 17th and runs every Friday, Saturday and Sunday until September 8th. Check out the action on the 100-block of Keefer Street from 6pm-11pm!