A favorite for all ages, the lion dance is an important tradition for Chinese people around the globe and usually performed as part of the Chinese New Year festivities and other important events. The lion dance brings good luck, prosperity, and happiness.
Quite often, people unfamiliar with lion dance think that they are watching ‘dragons’. However, one can tell it is lion dance since it only takes two people to animate the lion. One handles the head, made out of strong but light materials like paper-mache and bamboo, the other plays the body and the tail under a cloth that is attached to the head. The dragon dance is a traditional Chinese dance performance involving a team of performers using poles to rhythmically move a dragon prop. Musicians, playing a large drum, cymbals and a gong, accompany the lion and dragon. Crowds are often wowed by the acrobatic maneuvers of the dance performances!
The Vancouver Chinese Lion and Dragon Dance Team is one of the foremost lion dance troupes in Vancouver and perform both the traditional Southern Chinese Lion Dance plus the Dragon Dance. The troupe performs year-round at a variety of events and occasions, ranging from weddings, sporting events, celebrations, birthdays, business grand openings to major festivals, in and out of the Greater Vancouver area.
