Northern Lion

 

Northern lion dance or the Peking lion is popular in the northern parts of china has it's root in the Beijing opera. This type of lion with its mane (long lion like hair) looks more like a real lion than the southern lion. The performers of northern lion dance are completely dressed in a costume with shaggy yellow fur and red highlights. The gold coloured head of northern lion is smaller than the southern one and has a less moveable mouth and a wide square jaw with a read beard. The lion with the red ribbon on the head represent male, while the lion with green ribbon represent the female lion.

 

  

On the left: The Northern lion with the performers

On the right: The male and female lion head

 

 

Historically, the northern (Beijing) lion was performed by acrobats for the entertainment of government officials and the emperor. Which is why the style of dancing was very acrobatic and theatrical. Even the music sounds more northern, with more Beijing opera influence. Even today, the easiest way to see a northern lion dance is to watch an acrobatics show, where the performance is started or concluded with a lion dance. The movements of this lion are smooth, more playful and include many acrobatic manoeuvres

In the performance of the lion dance of Chinese acrobatics, they often appear in groups of three or more. Like its southern cousin, the Peking lion has its own set of performing props and tradition. While the Northern lion stands on a giant ball and rolls it over a huge teeter-totter, or traverses a high wire; its southern cousin climbs ladders and balances on benches, upside-down pots or the upright legs of an overturned table.

Northern lions often appear happily bouncing, tilting its head and wagging its tail in family groups of three or more-two parents and at least one offspring. The group is often accompanied by a lion tamer, usually a woman or young boy. The lion tamer holds a small ball aloft to entice and tease the lion, encouraging it to perform more and more difficult acrobatic manoeuvres.

 

Above: Acrobatic performance by the northern lions

 

As the northern lion is commonly performed with acrobatic stunts, it is not learnt by as many people as the southern lions, which are commonly seen in rituals in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

 

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South Lion

Green Faced Lion