Lion dance, "food" on full moon night

(Baonghean) - Breaking the cake, playing with lanterns, and dancing with lions are indispensable spiritual dishes on full moon occasions. This is also a meaningful activity, imbued with national cultural identity.

These days, every night the yard behind the People's Committee of Truong Thi Ward, Vinh City is lit up until 10pm with the bustling sound of drums and gongs. No longer children, nor is this the first year of participation, but the excitement of the members of the ward's lion dance team seems to have never "cooled down". The leader of the team, Mr. Nguyen Huy Binh, is the ward's Youth Union Secretary, the founder and the longest-serving member of the lion dance team. Having many years of experience as a main dancer, he always arrives very early, both to guide the children in the movements and to directly participate in the drum team... His enthusiasm makes him forget his age. He shared: Up to now, the lion dance team of Truong Thi Ward has been around for 5 years. During that time, although the team's members have changed a lot, their spirit, enthusiasm and passion for a traditional art form have never changed.

The lion dance team of Truong Thi ward (Vinh city) practices in preparation for the 2015 Mid-Autumn Festival.

After the ward Youth Union Secretary, the person who is most attached to the lion dance team is Ho Viet Viet. In the three years of being the main dancer, Viet has many memories of this interesting job. The most memorable was the time he and a charity organization went to Huoi Tu, Ky Son district to organize the Mid-Autumn Festival for children in the highlands. The trip took place in the middle of the 8th lunar month of 2012, on a rainy day. When we arrived, we felt sorry for the children in the highlands, because they had never enjoyed a real Mid-Autumn Festival. As for lion dance, lion dance is really a strange thing. At first, many boys and girls were scared when they saw the big head, with a golden, sparkling red light... they just stood hiding behind their mother's shadow. However, when the drums just sounded, when the lion suddenly rushed out from behind the stage, majestic and powerful, when the smiling face appeared, joy seemed to explode...

Other lion dance teams in Vinh City were established after the Nghe An tourism year 2005. However, after a short period of operation, the teams all disbanded. It was not until 5 years later that the lion dance teams of Truong Thi ward, Cua Nam ward, Hong Son ward, Le Mao ward, and Hung Binh ward gradually restored themselves. Lion dance, in the folk view, symbolizes good luck and is often held on the occasion of Mid-Autumn Festival, Lunar New Year and important events. Previously, the lion dance group often had a person wearing a paper lion head and dancing the gestures of this animal to the beat of the drum. The lion head had a long tail made of colored cloth held by a person waving it to the rhythm of the lion dance. In addition, there were cymbals, gongs, colored lights, five-colored flags, and someone holding a stick to protect the lion head... The lion dance group went first, followed by adults and children...

The activities of lion dance teams in Vinh City are also organized according to old customs, but are re-staged more vividly and youthfully according to the rhythm of the new life. The main activity of lion dance teams has long been performing on the occasion of Mid-Autumn Festival. Activities are increasingly professional and methodical, lion dance teams are also invited by event organizers to perform at opening and groundbreaking programs, perform on the Mid-Autumn Festival night at agencies and units to earn more income and raise funds. In addition, many teams also participate in lion dance to support charity programs, serve the Mid-Autumn Festival programs at the grassroots level. Also from these activities, the lion dance movement in Vinh City is increasingly vibrant and colorful. Moreover, it also contributes to preserving a beautiful traditional cultural feature of the nation.

Article and photos:My Ha