Lion Dance (Guangdong Awakening Lion)

The Cantonese 'awakening lion' dance is a form of southern lion dance widespread in the Pearl River Delta, rooted in folk festivity and martial-arts tradition, meant to drive off ill fortune and invite blessings.

Two performers animate one lion to a driving drum-and-gong beat, featuring the 'plucking the greens' climax, pole-stance footwork and leaps, with an expressive, fierce lion's head.

The Cantonese lion dance is national-level intangible cultural heritage and a signature performance of Lingnan festivals and folk events.

In Guangzhou you can watch the lion dance at festivals, ancestral-hall and temple fairs, and martial-arts hall performances.