At the heart of CU Lion Dance: Forging identity, continuing a legacy

Upper West Side NY

05 February, 2022

2:48 PM

Description

Columbia Daily Spectator BY FRANCESCA FIERRO • FEBRUARY 3, 2022, 11:21 PM With neon colored fur, gaping painted mouths, and dazzling mirrors adorning their foreheads, the lions in Chinese lion dance are striking figures. A combination of the bizarre and the beautiful, the lion figure is an amalgamation of many animals that, according to legend, saved a village by scaring off an evil spirit. Against a backdrop of booming drums, the dancers inside the lions make the lions rear mightily, bow, and chase away malevolent spirits to begin Chinese New Year. Columbia University Lion Dance was founded in 2000 with the help of the Columbia University Chinese Students Club. The club performs at both campus events, such as Lunar Gala, and events across New York City. For some of CULD's 50 members, the group is a way to make friends; for others, it strengthens a cultural connection. Growing up in Taiwan, co-president Ethan Wu, SEAS '23, was surrounded by lion dance, but he did not become involved as a performer until arriving at Columbia. He has been a member of the club since joining as a first-year. In addition to practices during the week, Wu and his teammates spend time together during off-campus performances, especially during the winter months around Chinese New Year. Through CULD, Wu found his "most important group of friends." "I think the most fulfilling part of running this club … is the fact that unlike a lot of other dance performing groups on campus, we don't have any auditions," Wu said. CULD is open to anyone who wants to learn more about lion dance, and all skill levels are welcome. The accepting and welcoming nature of the club was pivotal for Christina Duan, BC '23, while she was a first-year student struggling to connect to her heritage and culture. Lion dance gave Duan a space to reconnect with her Chinese roots, something she had never been able to explore before. Participating in a traditional Chinese art form at college allowed her to come to terms with her identity alongside other Asian American students. "I had held myself back so much as a child because of whiteness and the heavy pressure to assimilate and conform with my peers," Duan said. Performances with CULD opened cultural doors for her off campus as well, including a growing relationship with Chinatown, which Duan described as an "ethnic enclave" that has a sense of "outsider and insider" for her. For Duan, simply being Chinese was not enough for her to truly feel like she belonged in Chinatown. Residents historically speak Cantonese and are immigrants, whereas Duan, a child of immigrants, speaks Mandarin and was born and raised in the US. "It's hard to find a foothold in there, even though it is so much of your culture. [Lion dance] really let me have a backdoor to these places, like these restaurants, that otherwise would have this customer-like, business relationship with me," Duan said. When Chinatown's businesses experienced a drop in business at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Duan became more involved in the community. Performing lion dance became part of a larger community effort to attract visitors and aid struggling businesses. Participating in this show of support for the business owners was inspiring for Duan. "I think it's a nice mental shift to have the [lion dancers]. During the performance, there's so much joy, so much celebration, so much happiness. It really brings people together," she said. For CULD member Alex Chin, SPS '22, the personal connections forged through lion dance continue a legacy. Chin took kung fu lessons as a child, and then turned to lion dance in his teenage years to help keep his kung fu school in business. Such a financial connection between lion dance performances and kung fu schools is prevalent in Chinatowns across the United States as well. "Doing lion dance performances [helped] keep rent [payments] up because of the national trend of gentrification and higher rent prices in Boston's Chinatown and Chinatowns everywhere," Chin said. "Watching these schools drop every few months was really scary to think about." When Chin thinks of his future with lion dance, he reflects on the people that came before him: his dad, who also did lion dance, and his shifu—kung fu master—who still works at 70 years old to pay rent. "Helping my shifu, having his vision live down via my other classmates, helping him with lion dance performances and getting better at the craft," he said of his future goals. CULD helps its members foster a deep commitment towards their heritage and Chinese culture. At Columbia, there is no "typical" CULD member: whether they are looking to reconnect with their Chinese roots, trying to continue a legacy, or are simply curious, there is a place for all of them. "This club has been on campus for a long time and continues to change people's lives in terms of what lion dance has brought [them] while at Columbia," Chin said. "20 years of people coming and going. That's something that hopefully won't stop anytime soon." Staff writer Frankie Fierro can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow Spectator on Twitter @ColumbiaSpec. Founded in 1877, the Columbia Daily Spectator is the independent undergraduate newspaper of Columbia University, serving thousands of readers in Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and beyond. Read more at columbiaspectator.com and donate here.