THE physically demanding dragon dance is widely recognized as a symbol of Chinese festivities. Tan Weiyun finds out how it fares in Jinshan District where one town has a unique take on the energetic art.

A silver dragon trots on the grass, its big red eyes blinking quickly; then it suddenly hops to a chair placed on three wooden square tables. The dragon rides and dips freely among the chairs and tables to the pounding sounds of gongs and cymbals, and finally hovers into a large coil, rearing its head with pride.

"Did you know that the dancers hiding in the dragon's body and carrying the heavy poles are all over 55 years old?" says 57-year-old Ye Jiankang, an office director in Luxiang Town's cultural center, who has been doing the dragon dance for almost 30 years. He danced when he was young and in recent years has become a dragon dance choreographer.

Dragon dance, performed by a skilled team usually made up of 10 to 15 people whose job is to bring the motionless body to life, is a century-old folk art and the absolute highlight of almost every traditional Chinese festival and celebration. It is a combination of martial arts, acrobatics folk dance and music.

For farmers in Luxiang, a small picturesque town in Jinshan District, the dragon dance is a popular pastime that can be seen everywhere - in the rice fields, on the hills, by the rivers and among the woods - when the farming season is over.

White dragon

They nickname the dance "white dragon" because the dragon costume is often covered with a rich silver fabric.

Luxiang's white dragon originated during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) when Taoism and Buddhism ruled Chinese society. With numerous temples mushrooming, various temple fairs and rituals were held, which made the dragon dance prosper rapidly.

Ancient Chinese believed that the sea was dominated by four dragon kings in the east, west, north and south, who worked together to control the rainfalls. People danced the dragon dance, hoping that the kings, Gods of Rain, could bless them with plentiful water year round to irrigate the farmlands.

The early dragon in Luxiang was made of straw, linked by a thick rope running from the head to its tail, normally about 30 meters long, and carried by about 15 dancers.

The old-fashion straw dragon was made up of 13 parts, one part for the head, 12 parts for the body (including the dragon tail), each 1.2 meters long.

The 12 parts and the 1.2-meters stood for two lots of 12, which adds up to 24, representing the 24 jie qi, or solar terms (the 24 divisions of the solar year in the traditional Chinese calendar).

The straw was replaced by rich fabric in the early 1900s "because farmers found the straw was a little rustic," Ye says.

Energetic act

Dragon dance is somewhat of a freestyle sport. It can be performed by men, women and children. The dancing team can vary from 5, 9 or 15 people; even one man can perform the dance.

The heaviest part is the dragon's head, made of bamboo and installed with big eyes and whiskers, which can weigh up to 20 kilograms. It is decorated with bronze bells on the ears and more than 300 balls of yarn, linked by more than 10,000 shining beads.

When it is dancing at night, the bulbs hidden in the mouth and eyes enliven the dragon, which glitters in the dark. Together with the lights put in each part of the body, the flying shiny-silver dragon looks similar to a flash of lightning seen from the distance.

"The early head was shaped like a dog's head, but we designed it with a lion's head, which looks more imperial," Ye says.

The dragon head is the most important part. The heavier it is, the more difficult it will be for dancers. Normally, a head is carried by three physically strong men.

Competitions are often held on a regular basis around the town. The prize for the wining team is a sumptuous and extravagant feast. "This tradition is still kept today. The generous treat shows the absolute respect of the losers to the winner," Ye says.

One thing that makes Luxiang's white dragon dance unique is that it specializes in dancing on the chairs, benches and tables.

The long narrow benches represent the paths that traverse the rice fields. Dancing on them means the auspicious dragon flies from the heaven to save the crops.

The square tables are the bridges, where the dragon introduces the water from the river to the farmlands.

The second most important dancer is the one who stands next to the head carrier, the "dragon neck," because it links the head and the body, and controls the dragon's movements.

When one of the head carriers is tired, the "neck" should dance forward and replace the carrier smoothly and unnoticed.

The dragon tail is always carried by a small and agile man. "As you can see, if the dragon turns his head and takes one small step, the tail has to run a big circle to echo the head. It is a tough job," Ye says.

Risky movement

There are various complicated and risky movements, such as standing on the top of a small chair piled on top of three tables, shuttling back and forth on a narrow bench, jumping from one dancer's shoulder onto another's back, hopping on one foot from this chair to another, among others.

"Almost each of my dancers in the team has had some injuries," the director says. "But they never complain. They just love the dance." Many of them learnt to dance from their fathers and grandfathers.

The Luxiang's white dragon has reaped lots of awards in various city and nationwide dragon dancing competitions. Now it is applying to be recognized as a Shanghai Intangible Cultural Heritage and the result will be announced next month.

In order to better carry forward this ancient folk dance, the local government has made it an optional course in the town's schools in recent years.

The project has achieved success. In the latest town-wide sports meeting, a total of 600 students were dancing 60 dragons together on the central square. "It was breathtaking," Ye recalls.