恭喜发财! Celebrate Lunar New Year and bring luck to your year ahead by enjoying a FREE performance by Laughing Dragon Kung Fu.
The Lion Dance is a Chinese ceremonial performance dating back nearly two thousand years. Lion Dance is a main feature at many Chinese festivities including New Year celebrations, parades, banquets, formal birthdays, grand openings, and anniversaries. A Lion is brought to life by two dancers, one carrying the head on their shoulders and the other supporting the Lion’s tail. Due to the strength and stamina required to perform the Lion Dance, its practitioners are often members of Kung Fu schools. At Laughing Dragon Kung Fu, Lion Dance is a key component to our advanced training. With Lion Dance we are able to preserve a valuable aspect of Chinese culture while building the coordination and endurance required to excel in Kung Fu.
There are a number of different Lion Dance styles; Laughing Dragon practices Southern Lion Dance, specifically in the tradition of Jow Ga Kung Fu. The Lion is brought to life with crisp, stylized movements accompanied by the drummer and supporting musicians. A traditional Lion Dance performance will often present the dancers with a puzzle to solve or other challenge to overcome, testing not only their physical skills but also their knowledge of this ancient art.
A well-performed Lion Dance brings to its audience good luck, prosperity and joy. Skilled dancers will cause the Lion to seem truly alive, expressing its different moods by means of its stepping, head movements and facial expressions. Traditional Southern Lion Dance is an important part of Laughing Dragon Kung Fu, and of their students are trained in the fundamental aspects of this art. Through diligent training, advanced students have the opportunity to join our Lion Dance Troupe and perform for the public.