Scovone Star Magazine 2018-2019 | Page 25

Cheers for China! DANCING AND SINGING Chinese New Year dances are always a big hit in China! A Chinese New Year dance is called “Tai-chi” . Many people practice this dance in parks on Chinese New Year! Another Chinese New Year dance similar Tai- chi is Kung-fu. Kung-fu is a special Chinese dance that combines health keeping techniques and self defense (now you can see why Kung-fu Panda is called “Kung-fu” Panda). A lot of children celebrating Chinese New Year like performing dances and singing songs. One song called “Gongxi- gongxi” is very popular in many concerts on Chinese New Year. China also has 56 Ethnic Minority Folk dances on Chinese New Year! There are a ton more dances: TOP: “Drum for the Drum and Ribbon dance” www.chinasprout.com In addition to that, a bunch of other things in China that were stunning were the structures! Demonstrated Imperial palaces that were built by political people were c o n t r o l l e d t h r o u g h a rch i t e c t u r e . A n interesting fact was the Han Empire, who once lived in an Imperial palace, had the longest duration of any empire. It lasted 426 years, probably lasted 100 years longer than other long lasting ones, like Tang and Quing. That was in a palace a long time ago. Another structure were “wall structures”. In Ancient China cities, walls were surrounding them, but most people in those cities from ancient times were peasant farmers. Lots of them lived difficult lives. A reason why most people struggled was because in Ancient China, a very rough, thick, and dry bamboo paper was used, but a few years later, someone Chinese made paper in China. One more thing about structures in Ancient China was the stronger structures. To make these structures better, the Chinese people perfected them by making special types of bricks that got popular and strong like China is now! The Drum and Ribbon Dance TFK Boy’s Group Dance… And MUCH more! Chinese New Year is always exciting and has many cool dances, but that’s just the beginning! There is a very special and awesome dance in China that is sometimes celebrated on Chinese New Year: The Dragon Dance! The Dragon Dance is a very special traditional culture to Chinese people because they symbolize power, wisdom, and wealth. They also bring good luck. Parades for the Dragon Dance are celebrated by dancers, carrying a bright colored dragon. The Chinese people follow along the dragon’s looks by wearing flashy costumes. To make the dragon “dance” , someone holds a golden ball and waves it around while the “dragon” sways with it. The materials for the dragon costume is actually very simple: Paper, bamboo, cloth, and grass. The Dragon Dance is very entertaining. Each year it is 24