Lion Dance---Ancient Chinese Art Form For Auspicious Occasions

One of the most interesting things i've done in my life time is to be involved in a Lion Dance troop.Now,dont get me wrong,i maybe be Indian & the Lion Dance is mainly performed by the chinese here in Singapore.But i got the privilege & honour of partaking in this art form a couple of years back when the church i attended asked me to form a group to perfom during the upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations in church.

Lion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture,in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume.Asiatic lions found in nearby India are the ones depicted in the Chinese culture.






Chinese lion dances can be broadly categorised into two styles, Northern and Southern. Northern dance was used as entertainment for the imperial court. The northern lion is usually red, orange, and yellow (sometimes with green fur for the female lion), shaggy in appearance, with a golden head. The northern dance is acrobatic and is mainly performed as entertainment. Sometimes, they perform dangerous stunts.







Southern dance is more symbolic. It is usually performed as a ceremony to exorcise evil spirits and to summon luck and fortune. The southern lion exhibits a wide variety of colour and has a distinctive head with large eyes, a mirror on the forehead, and a single horn at center of the head. The lion dance also symbolises the myth of the Chinese new year.

The lion dance has close relations to kung fu and the dancers are usually members of the local kung fu club.They practise in their club and some train hard to master the skill.

During a lion dance performance, 2 performers co operate to “become” a lion. The Lion’s body consists of a lion head with movable ears, eye lids and mouth and a highly decorated body. The performers wear a t-shirt with the lion dance association’s logo and a special pair of pants designed to look like lion’s feet and in matching color and design with the lion’s body.





One of the performers takes the front position and assumes the front body of the lion. He controls the lion’s eye lids, ears and the mouth while his legs moves represent the front legs of a lion. The second performer arches forward to form the back of the lion, controls its tail and his legs represents the hind legs of the lion.




Lion dance performances are often accompanied by drum and gong players so that whenever there is a lion dance performances, the drum and gongs help to “inform” everyone around the area drawing crowds. The lion dance can occur with one or a group of lions and sometimes together with a Dragon Dance.





At the end of each performance,the Lion may leave a display of orange petals for audience to decipher the lucky numbers from the formation.Pastries such as prosperity cakes are also used as props because of its auspicious symbolism.

Lion dance performances are usually associated with joyous or auspicious occasions.I cant explain the adrenalin rush i had when i was the involved in the dance.It was amazing,truely a great feeling.The three weeks of daily hard work practising just before the actual performance in church was truely worth it.

Below are videos you guys can watch on some lion performance in action.Enjoy guys.... =)