THE VOICE | THURSDAY, FEB. 22,2018 | EDITORPERRINGRAUER

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A member of the Vancouver City Police Lion Dancing Team at Saturday's event on Victoria Drive, stays warm in the body of
the red lion costume before his performance begins. PeRR/N GRAUER PHOTO

LION DANCING, AT A GLANCE
THE PEOPLE AND THE HISTORY

SOURCE: WUSHUNJS.COM

..dancers team together to bring a
single lion to life - one performs as
the head, the other as the tail.

...basic stances in kung fu, from
which the many forms in lion dance
are derived.

..centuries ago that lion dance is
thought to have originated - during
the Han Dynasty in China

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Two members of the Vancouver City Police Lion Dancing Team begin to dress
New Year celebrations on Saturday. PERRIN GRAUER PHOTO

Bringing trad

Lion dancers work year-round t

= By LISA STEACY & PERRIN _ ments [in lion dancing], you're not
GRAUER applying them for a punch or any-_ t
thing like that, but you would need — s
ancouver’s Chinese lion upper body strength to move the
dance teams work hard _ lion head,” Low said. t
to hone the acrobatic Low’s team practices year-round, /
skills that will be on dis- one or more times per week to per-_ t
play during some of this year’s Chi- fect the shoulder-stands and mid- t
nese New Year celebrations. air twirls that are an iconic part
Ken Low is the chief instructor of their performances, which Low - s
of the Vancouver City Police Lion says have evolved in past decades |
Dancing Team, and a ninth degree into more daring feats of agility.
wushu martial arts master. “Now, the lion dancing is seen as ‘s
His award-winning lion dancers much more demanding...It's almost
performed to the accompaniment _ like gymnastics,” Low said. (
of cymbals, drums and gongs on The lion dance is meant to bring t
Saturday at the Victoria Drive Chi- luck and fortune to a community 1
nese New Year celebration in South and its members. It follows a ritual
Vancouver. progression in which the lion first t
Low said lion dancing is most of bows to pay respect, performs its
ten an art that kung fu practitioners _ various attributes as excited, happy,
mature into later in their training, cautious and curious, and eventu-_y
since the two techniques use many ally approaches an offering of let-  v
of the same forms and require the  tuce left out by a neighbourhood i
same kind of strength. business owner. r
“All the stances in martial arts are “After the lettuce, he feels happy,
used in lion dancing. And then, of excited for a while, and then forthe =r
course, you've got no arm move- _ parade, the lion would pay respect |