Lion dance
Lion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune. The lion dance is usually performed during the Chinese New Year and other traditional, cultural and religious festivals. It may also be performed at important occasions such as business opening events, special celebrations or wedding ceremonies, or may be used to honor special guests by the Chinese communities.
The Chinese lion dance is normally performed by two dancers, one of whom manipulates the head while the other manipulates the tail of the lion. It is distinguishable from the dragon dance which is performed by many people who hold the long sinuous body of the dragon on poles. Some fundamental movements of the lion dance can be found in Chinese martial arts, and it is commonly performed to a vigorous drumbeat with gongs and cymbals.
There are many forms of lion dance in China, but two main forms of the lion dance are the Northern Lion and the Southern Lion. Around the world, especially in Southeast Asia, the Southern Lion predominates as it was spread by Chinese diaspora communities who are historically mostly of Southern Chinese origin. Versions of lion dance related to the Chinese lion are also found in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Besides the Chinese-based lion dance, other forms of lion dance also exist in India, Indonesia, and East Africa.
History
There has been an old tradition in China of dancers wearing masks to resemble animals or mythical beasts since antiquity, and performances described in ancient texts such as Shujing where wild beasts and phoenix danced may have been masked dances. In Qin dynasty sources, dancers performing exorcism rituals were described as wearing bearskin masks, and it was also mentioned in Han dynasty texts that "mime people" performed as fish, dragons, and phoenixes.However, the lion is not native to China, and the lion dance therefore has been suggested to have originated outside of China from countries such as India or Persia, and introduced via Central Asia. According to ethnomusicologist Laurence Picken, the Chinese word for lion itself, shi, may have been derived from the Persian word šer. The earliest use of the word shizi to mean "lion" was in Han dynasty texts and had strong associations with Central Asia, and lions were presented to the Han court by emissaries from Central Asia and the Parthian Empire.
Detailed descriptions of lion dance appeared during the Tang dynasty and it was already recognized by writers and poets then as a foreign dance, however, lion dance may have been recorded in China as early as the third century AD where "lion acts" were referred to by a Three Kingdoms scholar Meng Kang in a commentary on Hanshu. In the early periods, it was associated with Buddhism: it was recorded in a Northern Wei text, Description of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang, that a parade for a statue of Buddha of a temple was led by a lion to drive away evil spirits. An alternative suggestion is therefore that the dance may have developed from a local Chinese tradition that appropriated the Buddhist symbolism of lion.
There were different versions of the dance in the Tang dynasty. In the Tang court, the lion dance was called the "Great Peace Music" or the "Lion dance of the Five Directions" where five large lions of different colours and expressing different moods were each led and manipulated on rope by two persons, and accompanied by 140 singers. In another account, the 5 lions were described as each over 3 metres tall and each had 12 "lion lads", who may tease the lions with red whisks. Another version of the lion dance was described by the Tang poet Bai Juyi in his poem "Western Liang Arts", where the dance was performed by two hu dancers who wore a lion costume made of a wooden head, a silk tail and furry body, with eyes gilded with gold and teeth plated with silver as well as ears that moved, a form that resembles today's lion dance. By the eighth century, this lion dance had reached Japan. During the Song dynasty the lion dance was commonly performed in festivals and it was known as the Northern Lion during the Southern Song.
The Southern Lion is a later development in the south of China originating in the Guangdong province. There are a number of myths associated with the origin of the Southern Lion: one story relates that the dance originated as a celebration in a village where a mythical monster called Nian was successfully driven away; another has it that the Qianlong Emperor dreamt of an auspicious animal while on a tour of Southern China, and ordered that the image of the animal be recreated and used during festivals. However it is likely that the Southern Lion of Guangzhou is an adaptation of the Northern Lion to local myths and characteristics, perhaps during the Ming dynasty.
Chinese lion dance styles
The two main types of lion dance in China are the Northern and Southern Lions. There are however also a number of local forms of lion dance in different regions of China, and some of these lions may have significant differences in appearance, for example the Green or Hokkien Lion and the Taiwanese or Yutien Lion, popular with the Hokkien and the Taiwanese people.Other ethnic minority groups in China also have their own lion dances: for example, the lion dance of the Muslim minority in Shenqiu County in Henan called the Wen Lion, the lion dance in Yongdeng County, Gansu, and others. There are other related forms of dances with mask figures that represent mythical creatures such as the Qilin and the Pixiu. The Qilin dance and the Pixiu dance are most commonly performed by the Hakka people who were originally from Central China, but have largely settled in the south of China and southeast Asia in modern times.
Chinese lion dances usually involve two dancers but may also be performed by one. The larger lions manipulated by two persons may be referred to as great lions, and those manipulated by one person little lions. The performances may also be broadly divided into civil and martial styles. The civil style emphasizes the character and mimics and behaviour of the lion, while the martial style is focused on acrobatics and energetic movements. Various forms of lion dance are also widely found in East Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, as well as in communities in the Himalayas region.
Northern Lion
The Chinese Northern Lion dance is often performed as a pair of male and female lions in the north of China. Northern lions may have a gold-painted wooden head and shaggy red and yellow hair with a red bow on its head to indicate a male lion, or a green bow to represent a female. There are however regional variations of the lion. Regions with lion dance troupes include Ninghai in Ningbo, Xushui in Hebei province, Dalian in Liaoning province, and Beijing. There are a number of variations of the lion dance performance, for example the Heavenly Tower Lion dance from Xiangfen County in Shanxi is a performance whereby a number of lions climb up a tall tower structure constructed out of wooden stools, and there are also high-wire acts involving lions.It is said that the Northern Lion may have originated from Northern Wei, when Hu dancers performed the dance for the emperor, and it was referred to as Northern Lion by the Song dynasty. Northern lions resemble Pekingese or Foo Dogs/Fu Dogs, and their movements are lifelike during a performance. Acrobatics is very common, with stunts like lifts, or balancing on a tiered platform or on a giant ball. Northern lions sometimes appear as a family, with two large "adult" lions and a pair of small "young" lions. There are usually two performers in one adult lion, and one in the young lion. There may also be a "warrior" character who holds a spherical object and leads the lions.
Southern Lion
The Chinese Southern Lion or Cantonese Lion dance originated from Guangdong and is the best known lion outside of China. The Southern lion has a single horn, and is associated with the legend of a mythical monster called Nian. The lion's head is traditionally constructed using papier-mâché over a bamboo frame covered with gauze, then painted and decorated with fur. Its body is made of durable layered cloth also trimmed with fur. Newer lions, however, may be made with modern materials such as aluminium instead of bamboo and are lighter. Newer versions may also apply shinier modern material over the traditional lacquer such as sequins or laser stickers.There are two main styles of Southern Lion: the Fut San or Fo Shan, and the Hok San or He Shan, both named after their place of origin. Other styles include the Fut-Hok, and the Jow Ga. The different lion types can be identified from the design of the lion head.