Guangdong lion dance in Singapore

The lion dance is an important cultural activity for Chinese Singaporeans. With its rhythmic sounds of gongs and drums creating a festive atmosphere and the caiqing (literally “plucking the greens”, a ritual of retrieving a sprig of lettuce that comes with a red packet) sequence, the lion dance has become an integral part of key local Chinese festivals, cultural events and grand opening events of companies and businesses. The more common form of lion dance in Singapore is the southern or Guangdong lion dance, which is also seen in Chinese communities in Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Europe and the United States.

It is believed that during the late Qing dynasty and early Republican years, southern China was in turmoil and Cantonese people in Guangdong left China to seek a better life elsewhere. During this wave of migration, the Cantonese brought the art of southern lion dance to Singapore. Today, apart from southern lion dance, other traditional types of lion dances are also performed in Singapore, including northern lion dance, Hainanese lion dance, Hokkien green lion dance and Hakka lion dance.

Awakening the lion

The southern lion is also known as xingshi (awakening the lion). The traditional lion head has three colours: yellow, red and black, representing historical figures Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei respectively, who reportedly became sworn brothers after taking an oath of brotherhood in a peach garden during the Eastern Han dynasty. In recent years, the colours sky blue and green have been added to the lion head to represent Ma Chao and Zhao Yun. Together with the three sworn brothers, they were collectively known as the Five Tiger Generals. These characters are from the classic Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and their personification on the lion head manifests the traditional Chinese values of loyalty and righteousness in the art of lion dance.¹

A newly-made lion head is lifeless and must undergo a dian jing (dotting the eyes) ceremony to awaken the lion so that it can bring good luck and prosperity to others. It also empowers the lion to bestow blessings.

Singapore’s first southern lion dance troupe

Singapore’s Hong Kong Street was already a distribution centre for food products from Guangzhou and Hong Kong over a century ago. Most of the provision shops were owned by the Cantonese, and workers from Heshan in Guangdong practised martial arts and lion dance as a form of recreation. During the Qing Ming Festival and Chong Yang Festival, Heshan clansmen would gather at Hong Kong Street before heading to Kwong Wai Siew Peck San Theng to pay respects to their ancestors with lion dance and martial arts performances. This led to the growth of Heshan’s art of lion dance in Singapore. In 1920, Singapore’s first southern lion dance troupe, the Yi Yi Dang Lion Dance Troupe was formed. It was renamed the Hok San Association Lion Dance Troupe in 1939. This organisation laid the foundation for the Heshan school of Cantonese lion dance in Singapore.

In the early years, the Cantonese were mainly active in the South Bridge Road area (known as da po), which was home to a large number of Cantonese clan associations and societies. Lion dance troupes active in Chinatown before and after World War II included the Hok San Association, the Kong Chow Wui Koon, the Sam Sui Wui Kun, the Canton Wong Clan Association, and the Singapore Pak Hock Pai Athletic Association.

The various schools of Guangdong lion dance

It is often said in the lion dance community that “southern lion dance originated in Foshan and flourished in Heshan”. Among the different schools of southern lion dance in Singapore, those of Guangdong Foshan and Heshan have the longest history. In terms of appearance, the Foshan lion has a longer head decorated with more pom-poms and shows its upper teeth. The lion looks formidable to personify Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. The Heshan lion head is flatter, with a mouth shaped like a duck’s beak, and does not show its upper teeth. It looks gentler and more reserved to personify Liu Bei.

The northern lion dance was performed during celebrations in the Southern Song dynasty, while the southern lion dance dates back to the early Qing dynasty. At that time, anti-Qing activists were being persecuted by the government and they fled to Foshan in Guangdong, where they created a southern lion with a large round forehead and a horn on its head. This was later known as the Foshan lion.²

Before World War II, Foshan lion dance troupes in Singapore were mainly formed by occupational guilds from inns (kezhan hang), provision shops (zahuo hang), and entertainment industries (yule tang) in Chinatown, and these troupes have since disappeared. After World War II, the Singapore Pak Hock Pai Athletic Association formed a lion dance troupe using traditional Foshan lions at the initiative of Kwan Tak Hing (1905–1996), who played the legendary martial artist Wong Fei Hung in a series of Cantonese films.

The founder of Heshan lion dance, Feng Gengchang (1852–1897), learned the authentic art of southern lion dance in Foshan before returning to his hometown of Heshan to continue studying the art. He created the Heshan style of lion dance inspired by cat gaits, which was later brought to Singapore by his successors.³

The Art of Lion Dance: Hok San Association Lion Dance Troupe

Local Fo He lion dance

Fo He lion dance, which combines Foshan and Heshan lion dance movements, originated in the lion dance troupe of Kong Chow Wui Koon, founded in 1939. Veterans of Foshan and Heshan lion dances in the clan association learned from each other and combined the two forms to create the localised Fo He lion dance.

Li Kun (1915–1967), who fought in the Battle of Shanghai, came to Singapore after World War II and settled in Chinatown, where he founded the Sim San Loke Hup Athletic Association in 1965. The lions used by the association in its performances originated from the Jow Ga lion dance in Xinhui, Guangdong. Draped in a colourful lion blanket, the Jow Ga lion has a head with a large round forehead like the Foshan lion and a mouth shaped like a duck’s beak like the Heshan lion.

Passing on the lion dance culture

According to historical records, there were already lion dance activities at Yeung Ching School (now Yangzheng Primary School in Serangoon) in Chinatown in the 1950s. With the help of the Hok San Association Lion Dance Troupe, the Yeung Ching Scout (Open) Group (Yeung Ching Lion Dance Group) was officially formed in 1965, making it one of the oldest school lion dance troupes in Singapore. In 1966, Yeung Ching School performed a lion dance featuring 10 lions at Singapore’s first National Day Parade.⁴

Despite the limited venues for lion dance practice in Singapore, the art of lion dance is very much alive, with more than 200 lion dance troupes registered under the Societies Act and more than 4,000 caiqing performances during Chinese New Year in 2024.⁵ Lion dance is one of the co-curricular activities in many schools, while tertiary institutions have also formed lion dance groups where male and female students practise together, with the latter dancing with smaller lion heads.

While the members of lion dance troupes are predominantly Chinese, there are participants from other ethnic groups who join to learn more about the local Chinese culture. The Hok San Association Lion Dance Troupe, for instance, has Indian and German members. Some Malays have also joined the Jing Yang Dragon & Lion Dance Troupe and participated in the caiqing ceremony during Chinese New Year, and lion dance is even performed at some Malay weddings in Singapore to add to the joyous atmosphere.⁶ After 2000, several new local lion dance troupes were formed. Examples include the Xinyang Athletic Association (Singapore), jointly set up by students and alumni of Nanyang Junior College in 2007,⁷ and the Yongyang Athletic Association founded in 2012. They are proof that the art of lion dance continues to be passed on in Singapore.