How to Hire Lion Dance 舞狮 in Singapore for CNY : 5 things to note - TheWackyDuo.com - Singapore Wacky Digital Underground Outpost

How to Hire Lion Dance 舞狮 in Singapore for CNY : 5 things to note



Want to hire lion dancers in Singapore?
With Chinese New Year (CNY) coming in less than 1 months time, you would have to start booking your Lion Dance. Lion Dance is a popular sight at household during CNY. It is performed at home for prosperity and luck. During the 16 days CNY celebration, it would not be uncommon to see them around the neighbourhood.



1 Where to find the lion dancers?


There are numerous Lion Dance associations with varying degree of performances. Some lions are decked out in traditional gear with matching pants and shoes, whereas the less established troupes will most likely dance in their Asics or Nike shoes. There are troupes that solely perform traditional dances while some troupes are more contemporary and may be decked out in LED lights to stand out, especially in the evening.

Given the numerous option, the best place to start searching for a credible lion dance is through the Singapore Wushu Dragon and Lion Dance Federation. If the Lion Dancers are performing in your house, you might want to opt for experienced ones especially if you have fragile items in the house. 

For CNY, it is best to book your troupe one to two months in advance if you want to secure their performances

2 What type of Lion Dance: Northern vs Southern Lion dance
There are also 2 distinct of Lion Dancers, the Northern and the Southern. The lions differ from each other in terms of appearances and performances.


The Northern Lions are more playful in nature. They usually perform in pairs and resemble Fu dogs. The emphasis on acrobatic dance and balancing on giant balls.


The Southern lions have a single horn and emphasis on Wushu movements. Accompanied by the vigorous drums, it's performances would be a familiar sight in most corners of Singapore come CNY.

3 What to Prepare?
During CNY, the lion dancers will visit houses to perform the traditional custom of "Cai Qing" 採青. The lion dancers will pluck auspicious green vegetables like lettuce hang high up to represent cǎi 採 cái 财. ( plucking fortune) .

The lettuce are prepared by the homeowners.


One caveat though, don't hang your lettuce too high as they may not be able to reach it.


In addition, you can also layout a plate of oranges, lettuce, Fa Gao( Fortune cake) and other forms of lucky fruits or food for a feast for the Lions. Do place an Ang pow to reward them for their hard work and for good luck!



4 What to Expect
Each Lion Dance performances takes about 10-15 minutes to perform the 採青 routine. They will also walk around the rooms if needed and should provide time for photo taking as well. The whole session would probably last about 30 mins.



If the lions are playful, they will even play with the children. The lions will eat the "greens" and spit them out for good luck and fortune.

After the performances, the lions would usually leave a good luck design from the oranges and a lucky number (4D) for the audience.


5 How much to hire Lion Dance?
The rates differ from various troupes. A decent clan may charge from $388 for 2 lions to $888 for a combination of 2 lions and Dragon dance. These days with intense competition, there are even lion dancers who would do a performance for less. However standards do vary, so it is best to engage a reputable troupe if you want quality performance. You might also want to provide Ang Pow for the troupe performances. 

You could also request for God of Wealth. It would normally extra , starting from $68 to get one .


Have you booked your lion dance?


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