AKSVB – Traditional Lion & Dragon dances

The AKSVB also teaches these traditional dances.
Lion and dragon dance classes are held at :

• École du Neufeld, 1 rue du Sundgau, 67000 Strasbourg.

Lion and dragon dances are traditional asian dances that can be found in different forms from South Korea to Indonesia.
They were first developed in China under the Han Dynasty before they were imported in Vietnam. The Vietnamese and Chinese diaspora implemented them in Malaysia and Singapore over the centuries.
The dances are an important part of the Vietnamese Têt and the Chinese Spring Festival, which celebrate the Asian New Year. The lion and dragon dances mark the renewal of the New Year by chasing away the demons of the ending year. They are thus bringing chance and prosperity for the year to come. Musicians playing drums, cymbals and gong traditionally accompany these dances.

The lion dance is split in different parts. Three parts are particularly symbolic and are shared by every school performing this type of dance. Each of these parts is marked by a particular musical rhythm.
The “Salutation to the Buddha” starts and ends the dance. It refers to the different legends that explain the lion birth and the creation of this dance.
The “Sleeping” part represents the lion awakening ceremony, its coming back on earth after being rejected from the sky by the Jade Emperor.
Finally, the “Eating the green” part is linked to the legend of the goddess Kwan Yin and the Celestial Lion. In this part, the Genie of the Earth, symbol of prosperity and wealth, offers a lettuce or a cabbage to the lion, which symbolizes the magic herb the goddess gave the lion so it gained back power and energy to get back to the sky.

The dragon dance expresses the wise strength of the animal. The legend says that dragons are leaping carps that have successfully swum upstream and jumped over waterfalls to rise high into the sky as dignified dragons, representing then the five elements- air, fire, earth, metal and water.

According to another legend, the Vietnamese people would descend from the union of the dragon king Lac Long Quân, who came from the water, and from the fairy Au Cơ, earth being. Hence dragons represent the wealth and longevity of peoples and cultures. For this reason, Asian people are fond of this mystical animal and this is why the dragon dance is so central during Asian New Year celebrations.

Classes

AKSVB provides traditional lion and dragon dances training. Registration is open all the year long starting from the second Friday of September.

Unicorn/Lion Dance

The style of our dance is the traditional fukien – or futsan. Each lion is performed by a pair of dancers accompanied by drums and cymbals and even sometimes by a Happy Buddha. Throughout the year, the student will learn:

• Basic moves (dancing steps),
• Lion Body and Head handling,
• Acrobatics
• Taos
• Percussions: drums and cymbals

Dragon Dance

The dance requires 9 heads for the adult one, and 5 heads for the child one. This type of dance requires a hard work of synchronization and coordination to bring the dragon to life. Each of dancers handles a long stick of aluminum or bamboo with one part of the body at the end. This dance is also accompanied by percussions: drums and cymbals.

Demonstration Team

The students who were introduced to the dances have the possibility to join the sought-after demonstration team during Asian New Year Celebrations and other events like weddings, community celebrations, carnivals, etc.

Hours and Places

Friday from 7.00pm to 9.30pm, at Gymnase de l’École du Neufeld, 2nd floor, 1 rue du Sundgau, 67100 Strasbourg.