Hmong dancers use hand gestures, movement and formation to tell a story during the May 16 Hmong Culture Festival at Lindhurst High School.

LINDA, CA (MPG) - The bright colors of embroidered costumes, the movement of pleated skirts and the sound of families cheering for young performers filled the Lindhurst High School gymnasium on May 16 as the school’s Hmong Club hosted its third annual Hmong Culture Festival.

The festival brought together students, families, vendors, performers and dance teams from across the region for a daylong celebration of Hmong culture.

“Hmong dancing and just dancing in general, performing, is a huge part of the Hmong culture,” said Hope Xiong, a Lindhurst High School senior and president of the Hmong Club. “Last year was our biggest one, but there’s still a lot of people here. The majority are definitely from around the 530 area. A lot of people come because of family or friends who go to this high school.”

A young performer has her makeup touched up before taking part in the Hmong Culture Festival at Lindhurst High School on May 16.

Lindhurst High School serves the Linda and Olivehurst area, where Hmong families have long been part of the community. Many Hmong families came to the United States as refugees following the Vietnam War and the Secret War in Laos, during which Hmong soldiers fought alongside U.S. forces. Over time, resettlement patterns, family ties and community connections helped contribute to a prominent Hmong population in Linda, Olivehurst and the greater Sacramento Valley.

Those connections remain strong. While many of the dance teams at this year’s festival were local, organizers noted a strong turnout from Oroville, Sacramento and Stockton.

This year’s festival theme, “50 Years of Resilience,” reflected the larger history of Hmong Americans. In 2024, California recognized May 14 as Hmong American Day, marking the anniversary of the 1975 fall of Long Cheng, a U.S.-Hmong air base in Laos, and the evacuation of Hmong soldiers and families from Laos to refugee camps in Thailand.

“This is our way of celebrating that, even if we are a couple days late,” Xiong said.

Dancers in traditional Hmong clothing gather outside the Lindhurst High School gymnasium during the Hmong Culture Festival on May 16.

The festival included food, crafts, vendors, a coed volleyball tournament and performances, but the dance competition was the main attraction. On stage, dancers used movement, hand gestures, formations, costumes and props to tell stories. Xiong said judges assessed each performance by evaluating dancers on technique, use of props, stability, centering and how clearly the performance communicated with the audience.

“Most of the time, Hmong dancing tells a story through their dancing,” Xiong said. “Using props is one of the biggest things as well, and how they integrate it into the dance to tell a story.”

She pointed to one performance that used a rice pan as an example of how a prop can help shape the meaning of a dance.

“That one is definitely telling a story of either a place where they’re farming, or that there is this village girl and maybe she likes to dance,” Xiong said.

Dancers perform inside the Lindhurst High School gymnasium during the Hmong Culture Festival on May 16.

The dance competition featured varsity-level dancers ages 13 to 18, while younger dancers participated in the regular performance showcase. Only the first-place dance team received a $300 prize, but Xiong said the event primarily served as a showcase for the Hmong community.

For John Her, a first-time attendee at the Lindhurst festival, the performances brought back childhood memories. Her spent much of the event watching and filming the dancers.

“My parents used to take me to Hmong festivals like this when I was a kid, but I haven’t been in a long time,” Her said. “I like dancing, and the costumes are so beautiful. It feels kind of like home, good memories.”