On January 17th, the talented dancers and muscians from Chung Ngai Dance Troupe visited Trinity’s upper campus (and joined by our ECP students and a few parents) to perform the Lion Dance in celebration of Chinese New Year on January 23rd.
The children learned that the lion creature was created by villagers to scare off animals to prevent them from eating their valuable harvest. The most important feature on the lion head is the mirror on its forehead—scaring off the animals with their own reflections! (Trivia question for your child: “How do you tell the difference between the lion and the dragon costumes?”)
The lions performed the ritual of eating lettuce (which is symbolically green like money) and spitting it back out to symbolize money being returned for prosperity and good luck. The lions also “spit” candy out to the children (which was more appreciated than the symbolic lettuce)!
Thank you to the generous family who sponsored the Lion Dance event!
(Answer to the trivia question: the lion has only four feet and the dragon has four or more feet.)