Inside the lion dance tradition

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Ian Cablay hoists Derek Miw during practice. They are among 22 youths from the Hawai'i Lion Dragon & Martial Arts Association who will compete Sunday at Blaisdell Arena. Photos by Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser

This sage advice of etiquette comes from Jeffrey Lam, president of the Hawai'i Lion Dragon & Martial Arts Association, on the eve of the First Hawai'i World Lion Kings Competition Sunday afternoon at the Blaisdell Arena.

"The history of the Chinese lion dance is long," said Lam, who is coaching a team in the competition, one of two from the Islands. Five other championship teams from Asia also will be here for the showdown, plus one from San Francisco.

"Lions are not native to China, but in Chinese tradition, the lion existed as a dog, a guardian who would protect all. There were religious ties to the lion. But now, it's mostly entertainment."

Traditionally, Lam said, lion dances were ritualistic, often used in exorcisms.

In modern times, the Chinese lion has become a multicultural, multi-purpose symbol of good luck, commonly summoned for weddings, Christmas parties and business launchings. It also is an icon of Chinese New Year and Chinatown happenings.

The dancer under the huge head of the lion, as well as the dancer controlling the tail end, customarily are martial-arts students eager to savor a cultural tradition. Physical dexterity is a requisite; movements are choreographed, so the two performers need to move and think as one, often on instinct.

"I'm Chinese; I guess, for me, it's a cultural thing, and it's fun," said Derek Miw, 15, a Maryknoll High School sophomore who is in his fourth year of lion dancing. At 5-foot-5 and about 130 pounds, he's hidden in the head of the lion, manipulating the moving mouth and flapping brows, bringing animation to the feathered, sequined, fringed beast.

"I want to try different things, like kung fu and martial arts," said Ian Cablay, 19, a Leeward Community College freshman. Of Filipino heritage, he reflects the growing multi-ethnic strains developing over the years; it's no longer an exclusive Chinese tradition.

"I've been lion-dancing for seven years," said Cablay, who at 5-foot-7 and 200 pounds consequently always is the tail guy who lifts the head handler. "Nobody can lift me," he said.

Derek Miw, front, and Ian Cablay practice their "walk" up a mountain, a routine that involves 20 poles three to eight feet high, each with a 14-inch circular pedestal on which they balance.

At a recent rehearsal at the Sun Yat Sen School's second-floor basketball court at the Chinese Cultural Plaza, Miw and Cablay went through a rigorous routine of making their lion "walk" up a mountain, composed of 20 poles of ascending heights, from 3 to 8 feet, each with a 14-inch circular pedestal on which they balance.

"You barely can see, so you have to rehearse the whole dance, with exact measurements drawn on the floor when you practice," Cablay said. "You sort of 'feel' your way through it."

Miw, the up-front guy, sees a little more but not much, since he's held and hoisted by the tail guy, landing on a pedestal or two in swift descents.

"You have to get the routine in your head," said Lam, their seifu (coach).

A competing team usually consists of the two lion dancers plus six musicians, including one gong player, four cymbal players and one drummer.

Judging, Lam said, is akin to Olympic skating or gymnastics.

"They look at strength, they look at stunts — but everything counts, with points added or deducted," he said.

A wrong tail wag would mean lost points. A prance not in syncopation with the drumming also would be a no-no.

The theme of the feat is judged, too; a lion could simulate going up a mountain, crossing a stream, sipping water, testing the depth of the water, seeing a reflection in the stream. Judges look for the precise pantomime for the specific action.

•	First Hawai'i World Invitational Lion Kings Competition 1-5 p.m. Sunday Blaisdell Arena $25, $35, $50, $65 526-4400

The Hong Kong entrant is reigning world champ; the Taiwan contingent is the current Taiwan world champ; the Singapore team is a seven-time Singapore winner; the China group is the 2001 world champion; the Malaysia ensemble is the 1999 world champ and presently in second place to the world champion.

Sherman Wong is coach of the other Hawai'i team, from the Chinese Physical Culture Association.

Lam said a typical lion outfit, from head to tail to leg and footwear (in dressed-up form, the dancers' feet are hidden in paws), costs about $1,000. His organization has about 20 lions of various vintage, all from China, each with slightly different characteristics.

For those who still can't differentiate between a Chinese lion and a Chinese dragon, think legs. A lion has four legs (because it takes two dancers to spring him into motion). A dragon, which the association also hauls out at some celebrations, has many legs, because it takes nine or 10 dancers to bring it to life.

And if you still can't sort it out, look for the dragon — with lots of legs — when it makes an appearance before intermission at the competition.

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, at 525-8067 or by fax at 525-8055.