Dragon Dance

Ⅲ-4Traditional DanceShuangliu, SichuanBatch 2 (2008)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

It originated in the Southern Song dynasty. The local ancestors, on the basis of such myths and legends as the 'Candle Dragon', which rules over light and darkness, the 'Cloud Dragon', which governs wind and rain, and the 'nine sons of the dragon', combined the snake's body, deer's antlers, tiger's eyes, ox's ears, elephant's legs, horse's mane, fish's scales and beast's whiskers to create the fire dragon lantern dance, an outstanding folk performing art.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

Classified by the form the dragon takes, dragon dance includes cloth dragon, gauze dragon, paper dragon, straw dragon, coin dragon, bamboo dragon, palm-fibre dragon, bench dragon, hundred-leaf dragon, lotus-flower dragon, fire dragon, chicken-feather dragon, flesh dragon and many other types; because the forms differ, their dance postures and dancing techniques also differ in their own ways. The traditional performance procedure of Chinese dragon dance generally consists of such segments as 'inviting the dragon', 'sending the dragon out', 'performing the dragon dance' and 'seeing the dragon off'. Dragon dance embodies cultural meanings of pioneering effort and of the unity of humanity and nature, and is an important part of the spirit and cultural heritage of the Chinese nation. Huanglongxi is an ancient water town in western Sichuan with a profound cultural foundation; the fire dragon lantern dance is the traditional mass cultural activity here that is most famous and most full of folk character. The fire dragon lantern dance has a long history and is widely transmitted; whenever Huanglongxi holds a festival or a ceremonial gathering, it lights up the fire dragon lantern as by long-established custom. To make the fire dragon performance more wondrous, people developed a unique gunpowder that gives off relatively little heat but brilliant sparks, which spray out when the dragon dances, in extraordinary splendour. In the Huanglongxi fire dragon performance, palace lanterns, line lanterns and plaque lanterns lead the way in front, the dragon body rises and falls with the dragon head and takes various soaring postures to the accompanying music, and the fire-sprayer aims at the procession to perform the fire-spraying, making the scene extremely lively.

Lanterns clearing the way

Palace lanterns, row lanterns and placard lanterns clear the way while the dragon undulates to the music and the fire-throwers spray sparks over the troupe.

Shao Hua (spraying sparks)

The most thrilling episode: a special gunpowder low in heat but brilliant in spark is sprayed over the dancers, dazzling without burning them.

Torch dragon, responding dragon and the dragon's nine sons

The mythological basis: Southern Song villagers combined the torch dragon of light and darkness, the rain-bringing responding dragon and the dragon's nine sons into the composite creature.

The composite dragon form

The formal elements of the Huanglongxi dragon, bamboo frame and cloth skin uniting the features of eight creatures, typical of western Sichuan lantern dragons.

The water-port customs of Huanglongxi

Huanglongxi is a water town of deep cultural sediment in western Sichuan, and the fire dragon is its most celebrated popular activity, danced at every festival and ceremony.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

Dragon dance, also called 'dragon performance', is known among the people as 'playing the dragon', 'playing the dragon lantern' or 'dragon lantern dance'; it is the most widely distributed and most far-reaching folk dance in China. This dance takes varied forms in its performance, and dragon dances among different ethnic groups and different regions differ markedly in style. The Huanglongxi fire dragon lantern integrates dragon, lantern, dance and fire into one, and has a strong local flavour of western Sichuan. The Huanglongxi fire dragon lantern dance takes Huanglongxi Town of Shuangliu County as its core transmission area, and its influence reaches the Fuhe and Luxi river basins in the southern Chengdu Plain. Locally the fire dragon lantern dance is combined with such water-dock folk customs as the ancient town temple fair and the floating of river lanterns; in performance, palace lanterns, line lanterns and plaque lanterns lead the way, the dragon body rises and falls with the head, the fire-sprayers spray sparks at the procession, and the whole street is filled with firelight and the sound of gongs and drums.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

It displays the folk customs and local culture of western Sichuan, and is an important means of transmitting fine national culture and carrying forward the spirit of the Chinese nation. In recent years the Huanglongxi fire dragon lantern dance has faced a survival crisis and urgently needs rescue. The rise and fall of the Huanglongxi fire dragon lantern dance is directly tied to the flourishing of the market at the ancient town's water dock: its gunpowder formula emphasises low heat and brilliant sparks, while the dragon is bound with bamboo strips as a frame and cloth skin as a garment, shaping a composite form combining the snake's body, deer's antlers, tiger's eyes, ox's ears, elephant's legs, horse's mane, fish's scales and beast's whiskers. In recent years the locality has incorporated the fire dragon lantern dance into the ancient town's cultural tourism and school-based transmission systems, but the number of old artisans able independently to make the gunpowder and spray the fire declines year by year, and the complete set of techniques still faces the risk of being lost.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

Dragon Dance (Shuangliu, Sichuan) · China ICH Official Project Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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