Lion dance
| Lion dance | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Chinese name | |
| Long characters |
舞獅 / 獅子舞 |
| Abbreviation |
舞狮 / 狮子舞 |
| Pinyin (Mandarin) | Wǔshī / Shīziwǔ |
| Jyutping (Cantonese) | Mou 5 si 1 / Si 1 zi 2 mou 5 |
| Japanese name | |
| Kanji | 獅子舞 |
| Rōmaji | shishimai |
| Korean name | |
| Hangeul | 사자춤 |
| Hanja | 獅子 춤 |
| Revised Romanization | Sayachum |
| Vietnamese name | |
| Quốc Ngữ | Múa lân |
| Chữ nôm | ? 麟 |
The lion dance ( Chinese 舞狮 / 舞獅 , pinyin wǔshī ) is a traditional dance in Chinese music , which is usually performed by two people under a "lion dress" with music. Today, the lion dance is traditionally performed every year for the Chinese New Year . It is also used as a lucky ritual for the inauguration of important buildings or important events - increasingly outside of China too.
The lion dance is taught today in independent lion dance schools, but also in many Kung Fu schools of the southern Kung Fu style.
Variants of the dance can be found in Japan , Korea , Tibet and Vietnam .
The lion
The lion (or the lion's dress) usually consists of a bamboo body that forms the lion's head. This is then covered with a firm and stretchable material. This fabric then runs from the head of the lion to the back, whereby the length of the "whole lion" can vary, as there are different sizes of lions. Some lions have a total length of up to 6.40 meters, while others are only 3.60 meters.
The fabric, or the “lion's skin”, hides the two lion dancers during the dance, of which only the legs remain visible and appear as the legs of the lion. The fabric is also mostly colored, which makes the lion look more magnificent. The lion's head usually has a small "horn" at the top, which comes from a legend of the ancient Chinese about the lion.
There are two threads in the inner cavity of the lion's head; these have an important function in the lion dance. When pulling the strings, the lion dancer in front closes the lion's eyes and at the same time the lion's ears move. In addition, the lion dancer can move a small flap at the bottom of the head, which represents the lion's mouth.
The legend
The southern lion, also known as the “ monster of the year ” ( Chinese 年 獸 / 年 兽 , Pinyin Niánshòu ), which is also an animal of the year in the Chinese calendar , comes from an old legend. This legend refers to the then emperor of the Qing dynasty , Qianlong (Ch'ian Lung).
One night he had a strange dream. He dreamed of a mythical being with a horn protruding from the center of his head and standing opposite him. The emperor felt frightened, but the creature just looked at him and was gone with a twinkle in its eyes. The emperor immediately summoned his scholars and servants the next morning and began to investigate the meaning of the dream and the essence.
His subordinates finally came to the solution that the creature could be a lion and that the latter wanted to make the emperor understand that he was equal in rank to the emperor. From then on, the emperor called this lion Ruishi ( 瑞 獅 / 瑞 狮 , ruìshī - "lucky lion").
Some time later, residents of Lingnan City in Guangdong Province created a new lion, but named it Fushan Shi . In order to fill this lion with life, various martial arts representatives experimented with different choreographies of dance steps to fulfill this task. So after some time an independent form of dance emerged, which is still known today as the "lion dance".
