As part of the City of Toronto's first ever Toronto Spring Festival, the University of Toronto Varsity Blues figure skating team took to the rink at Nathan Phillips Square on Saturday (Jan. 25) evening to provide a spectacular Lunar New Year performance.

"Toronto is such a diverse city to begin with, but we have also had the honour of having such a culturally diverse team throughout the years, so it was exciting to be a part of such a landmark event for the community and experience first-hand what this celebration means for so many of our student-athletes," said Varsity Blues figure skating head coach Brittany de Lapeyre.

With the debut of the Toronto Spring Festival, the event also featured the first-ever Lunar New Year fireworks display at Nathan Phillips Square, lighting up the night sky above Toronto City Hall. Additionally, the festivities also included a Chinese market, cultural performances, live music, and food vendors.

"When we were asked by the organization to perform, we thought this would be a great idea to showcase what we've been working on for such an amazing, high-energy crowd in the heart of Toronto," detailed first-year Varsity Blues figure skater Celina Guo. "With many of us on the team who celebrate Chinese New Year, it was a great way to start off the celebrations and get in the spirit!"

Marking the first new moon of the lunar calendar, which this year falls on Wednesday, Jan. 29, the typical 15-day spring festival celebrates the Year of the Snake for 2025, and the transition from the dark of winter to the light of spring.

 "Being able to connect with each other through performance while incorporating a cultural tradition that so many of our student-athletes celebrate curated a truly beautiful and memorable evening," added de Lapeyre.