Junior Michael Luu was supposed to spend Sunday helping to ward off evil spirits.
Luu plays the cymbals with the On Leong lion dance troupe, which is based in Waltham. He was going to perform in Chinatown during the city's celebration of the Lunar New Year.
Unfortunately, he had trouble parking.
"I got here late, so I was replaced," Luu said, standing in front of the stage as the troupe carried on without him.
Eight troupes and more than 200 dancers, musicians and choreographers were present at the Sunday performance, which was held on a temporary stage at the corner of Harrison Avenue and Essex Street in Boston. The event was organized by the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association of New England and sponsored by a number of city businesses and organizations.
The performance marked the beginning of year 4,703 on the Chinese calendar, the Year of the Dog. Lunar or Chinese New Year was Jan. 27, but since the actual day is traditionally spent with family, festivities in Boston are usually held one or two weeks later.
Ethnic Chinese and Vietnamese were joined by city residents, college students and dignitaries - including Mayor Thomas Menino - in watching the dances.
Menino wished the crowd "kung hei fat choi," or Happy New Year in Cantonese, before the performance.
The lion dance has a 1,000 year history in China. On New Year's Day, "lions" move from house to house, chasing away evil spirits that have gathered the previous year. Firecrackers are then used to scare away the "lions," but not before they perform an elaborate routine which requires two dancers to jump, sway and lunge with expert precision.
One of the troupes performing on Sunday was the Gund Kwok Asian Women's Lion Dance Troupe, which is the only all-female group of its kind in North America. The team carries a banner that reads in Chinese, "Women have hidden powers and can be just as good as men."
Preparation is extremely important for lion dance participants, because several people must work together to give the impression of one animal. Troupe member Angela Pierce said it took weeks of practices to prepare the team for the event.
"You have to be very coordinated, otherwise it won't look good," troupe member Sun-King Chan said.
After their stage performance, the troupes spent the rest of the day making visits to every business in Chinatown. The owners rewarded the "lions" with red envelopes filled with money - money that will largely defray the group's operating costs for the year.
More than 1,000 people in total watched the dancing, despite intermittent showers and a cold wind.
Even the imminent arrival of her child did not prevent Yi Luo from witnessing her husband's performance with the Wu Qing Troupe.
Covering her heavily pregnant stomach with a thick winter coat, Luo revealed that she was going to the doctor on Monday to give birth.
"Tomorrow the doctor will deliver the baby dog," she said.