CLEVELAND — For the second straight year, the Cleveland Asian Festival will be held virtually, but that does not mean everyone is being asked to stay home.

What You Need To Know

  • Cleveland’s Asian Festival will be held virtually from 10:30 a.m. to noon May 22

  • Viewers will be encouraged to visit AsiaTown following the festival to support local Asian-American-owned businesses

  • AsiaTown businesses have been hit hard during the COVID-19 pandemic and a recent rise in xenophobia targeting the Asian-American community

  • The Cleveland Asian Festival will feature local restaurants and performers

This year’s festival will be May 22 at 10:30 a.m. It will be a 90-minute online event that will include performances from local entertainers and food demonstrations from AsiaTown restaurants. Festival co-organizer Johnny Wu said that six local restaurants, six performances and four virtual tours will be included in this year’s festival.

The performances will represent various Asian and Pacific island cultures, including Chinese, Indian, Korean and Hawaiian cultures.

In 2019, the last year the festival was held in person, the event drew 50,000 over two days. Due to the pandemic, the 2020 event was canceled.

After the 90-minute festival is over, Wu said that viewers will be encouraged to visit AsiaTown. Wu said that AsiaTown businesses have been hard hit due to both the pandemic and a recent increase of racism targeting the Asian-American community.

“It’s been hard but the community strives to move forward,” Wu said. “After they see the show, they will go to AsiaTown and go check out the different things we talk about and maybe dine for lunch at some of those restaurants so they can experience the meal itself."

Those who miss the festival live on May 22 will be able to watch a replay on YouTube and Facebook, Wu said.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that the 2020 festival was canceled. A previous version stated the 2020 Cleveland Asian Festival was held online.