Gallery
Photos from events, contest for the best costume, videos from master classes.
 |  |
 |  |
 |  |
 |  |
 |  |
 |  |
Chinese New Year’s is here, and in Hawaii that means a visit from our favorite, jubilant, sometimes scary Chinese lions. They dance through local businesses and schools with blessings of good luck and fortune for the new year and clearing out any unwanted spirits. However, there are a lot of small details that are easy to miss—and sometimes Beyond the stage, during the Chinese New Year, lion dance troupes embark on a customary journey, visiting homes and shops within the Asian community for the ritual of “cai qing” (採青), translating to plucking the greens.” Here, the lion engages with auspicious green lettuce, often hung on a pole or placed on a table, symbolizing fortune. Dragon, lion dance, eating lettuce (wishing for luck in Chinese) and firecrackers are an integral part of the Chinese New Year celebration. This celebration If you’re lucky enough to attend a Chinese New Year celebration, you may have the chance to view a lion dance. Likely dating back 2,000 years to the Han Dynasty period of Chinese history, the dance is a spectacular, high-energy affair, with performers in bright lion costumes leaping and twirling to the sound of loud drums and cymbals, dancing to bring good fortune in the new year. Danny Quon, the Dragon and Lion Dance Director with the Hon Hsing Athletic Club of Vancouver, explains this is a tradition that goes back at least hundreds of years. "It's basically an offering to the lion when the lion comes to the house or the store," he says, as lettuce is symbolic food for the lion. The word for lettuce in Cantonese is choy. Choy cheng in Chinese basically means “plucking the greens”. The greens in a lion dance are a physical head of lettuce. However, the symbolism goes far behind some discount produce you can find at Costco. The Chinese language is full of puns and wordplay, especially when it comes to things like good luck, wealth, and happiness. During Chinese New Year, it’s thought that the longer the dragon, the more luck (and, historically, the more rain for the upcoming harvest season) will be brought to the community. ADVERTISEMENT To spot the dragon dance, watch for a large team of dancers who maneuver a long, serpentine body held aloft on poles with a dragon head and tail at The lion eats the lettuce and the packet, then scatters leaves around the street as a symbol of good luck in the New Year. Dragon dances are slightly different. All over the world at New Year, dancers dress as a dragon and dance through the streets, spreading good luck. The longer the dragon (the more dancers it has), the luckier it will be. Beijing, China: Dragon dancers perform at a park on the first day of the Lunar New Year of Snake on Jan. 29. Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images hide caption The lion dance is most prominent during Chinese New Year. Given the widely spread holiday spanning two weeks, the lion dance is seen almost everywhere – at homes, offices, malls, parks, temples, and even on the streets. Lion Dance by the Staten Island Lions in Chinatown, Manhattan, NYC as part of Chinese New Year 2018 Celebrations blessing a local business on 237 Grand Stree Cultural Significance: Opera preserves traditional values and stories, making it an integral part of Chinese New Year. Auspicious Dates for Chinese New Year 2025. The selection of dates during Chinese New Year is guided by the Chinese lunar calendar and is believed to maximize good fortune. Here are the most auspicious dates: The lion dancers will stand on thick wooden stakes to climb high and pick the romaine lettuce. It's a great test of the performer's balance and leg strength. The costume of the southern lion dance includes a bamboo-made head with gauze and paper, and durable layered cloth with fur. Articles You Might be Interested in. Chinese New Year Dragon Dance Amazing Dragon dance during Chinese new year celebration in London Trafalgar square A Chinese dragon. Chinese New Year Dragon Dances. Dragon dances are an important part of the Chinese New Year celebrations. Along with lion dances, they are often the highlight of Chinese New Year parades. From Chinese New Year's Day to the Lantern Festival, dragon dances can be seen in many places in China and Chinatowns around the world. They Key Differences Between the Lion Dance and Dragon Dance. Number of Performers: The Lion Dance is performed by two dancers, one controlling the lion's head and the other the body and tail. In contrast, the Dragon Dance involves a team of dancers, sometimes 9 to 20 or more, each carrying a segment of the dragon’s long body. Chinese New Year (aka Lunar New Year) is celebrated with traditional Lion Dancing at Jasmine Restaurant. The goal here is to grab the lettuce for good luck a Chinese New Year Dancers Lee Association Lion Dance Team at Uwajimaya in Beaverton, Oregon. The dragons fulfilled a new year tradition of eating a lettuce a The Chinese lion dance, which is known as wǔshī in Mandarin, is another kind of traditional Chinese dance that’s performed at special occasions, including New Year. As you might have already guessed, dancers operate a large, lion-like costume to mimic the movements of a lion. Celebrate the Year of the Snake in Canada’s oldest Chinatown, presented by the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association! The festivities kick off at the Gates of Harmonious Interest with an 8-lion performance by the Wong Sheung Kung Fu Club, a dragon dance by the Victoria Chinese Public School, and traditional Chinese dances.
Articles and news, personal stories, interviews with experts.
Photos from events, contest for the best costume, videos from master classes.
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |