Skip to the content

Menu

History

If one traces back to the roots and history of lion dance, one would discover that lion, the animal itself, did not exist in China. The "Lion" itself, was a creature that people worshipped as Gods, to rid illness and drought. The history of Chinese worshipping animal creatures as Gods can be tracked back all the way to the Tang Dynasty.

The Origin of Lion Dance

Long long time ago, a creature called "Nian", would haunt the villages every year on Chinese New Years Eve. Although Nian did not harm people, it would destroy all the crops in the villages. One year, the villagers decided they've had enough and needed to take action. They gathered everyone around, with farm tools as weapons. They also used bamboo, paper mache, multi-coloured cloths sewn together to make a lion, and banged drums, cymbals and gongs, as well as light firecrackers to scare Nian away. Nian no longer haunt the villages. From then on, the villagers turned this into an annual event, and gave each other red packets as a way to wish everyone a good year ahead.

Fut San / Fo Shan / Faat San / 佛山 / 佛裝

The Chinese Southern style lion dance originated from Fo Shan, a region in Guangzhou, China. This style of lion dance is mainly adopted by Chinese Kung Fu school, like Hung Gar, Hung Fut, Choy Li Fut, Lung Ying, Bak Hok, Tam Gar, Mok Gar etc. One of the most famous lion dancer ever known is Master Huang Fei Hung.

The Fo Shan style is a very strong and aggressive style, mainly performed by Chinese Kung Fu practitioners. The lion itself has eyes staring slightly downwards and has a sharp horn. Back then, only some of the most senior students are allowed to perform lion dance, as it was a Kung Fu school's trademark. The lion dancers would show their specific techniques that would reflect the style of Kung Fu.

Hok San / He Shan / 鶴山 / 鶴裝

The He Shan style was originally created by "The Canton Lion King" Fung Gang Cheung (馮庚長) . He was originally a Fo Shan style lion dancer, however he modified a lot of techniques by mimicking behaviours of cats. The He Shan style could be traced back as early as the Qing Dynasty.

He Shan lions are very colourful, with a less aggressive look as compared to a Fo Shan lion. The lion is always smiling, hence why it is very popular with spectators. The foot work is a lot more agile, and jumpy, just like a cat. The music is also a lot more complicated, allowing the lion to express itself with many different types of expressions.

The He Shan style is now extremely popular around the world, with most teams now using this style of lion dance in competitions, especially on the high poles.

At Hong De Lion and Dragon Dance Association, our He Shan style is inspired by Grandmaster Lui San Yiu 呂新堯, and hence the style is called the Lui Family's Hok San Sar Ping 沙坪獅藝呂派一脈.

Performance Booking and Training Enquiry

Phone:
Cecilia - 0422 439 114 
请搜 Wechat - CeciliaHsieh1960
(Mandarin and Cantonese)

Denis - 0425 849 998

Tai - 0435 273 320  (Vietnamese)

Contact Us

HongDeLion

Performances

  • St Andrews Brighton LNY Festival
    Sat 14Feb 10:00 AM
  • Parque Apartments, St Kilda
    Sun 15Feb 15:00 PM
  • Year of the Horse - Premier's Celebration Gala 2026
    Sun 15Feb 18:00 PM
  • Richmond West PS
    Mon 16Feb 09:00 AM
  • EatAlley QV
    Mon 16Feb 11:30 AM
  • Caulfield Grammar School - Malvern
    Mon 16Feb 14:15 PM
  • West Tower Melbourne Quarter
    Mon 16Feb 15:30 PM
  • Ming Dining
    Mon 16Feb 18:15 PM
    299 Queen Street, Melbourne
  • Panda Kitchen - Glen Waverley
    Mon 16Feb 18:30 PM
  • Golden Dragon Palace - Templestowe
    Mon 16Feb 19:15 PM
    363 Manningham Road. Templestowe
  • Hogans Crossing Sports Club
    Mon 16Feb 19:30 PM
    56 Hogans Road, Hoppers Crossing
  • Hakka Cuisine
    Mon 16Feb 20:15 PM
    5/1101 Toorak Road, Camberwell
  • Ming Dining
    Mon 16Feb 20:45 PM
    299 Queen Street, Melbourne
  • Melbourne International Airport
    Tue 17Feb 10:00 AM
  • Sunshine Marketplace
    Tue 17Feb 13:30 PM
  • Chadstone Shopping Centre - LNY
    Tue 17Feb 17:00 PM
    Location - The Dinning Laneway, near Yo-Chi
    Lion Dance
  • Panda Kitchen - Glen Waverley
    Tue 17Feb 18:30 PM
  • Golden Dragon Palace
    Tue 17Feb 19:15 PM
    363 Manningham Road. Templestowe
  • Tea House on Burke
    Tue 17Feb 19:30 PM
    911 Burke Road, Camberwell
  • Hakka Cuisine
    Tue 17Feb 20:15 PM
    Unit 5/1101 Toorak Road, Camberwell
  • Elderly Chinese Home - Parkville
    Wed 18Feb 10:00 AM
  • The Ascott Australia
    Wed 18Feb 11:30 AM
  • Freshwater Place
    Wed 18Feb 12:30 PM
    Southbank
  • Accenture
    Wed 18Feb 12:30 PM
  • Zurich Assure
    Wed 18Feb 14:00 PM
  • Woolworths Box Hill
    Wed 18Feb 03:30 AM
  • Caulfield Grammar - Junior School
    Thu 19Feb 08:30 AM
    Wheelers Hill
  • Caulfield Grammar - Senior School
    Wed 18Feb 11:30 AM
    Wheelers Hill
  • Camberwell Girls Grammar - Senior Campus
    Wed 18Feb 13:00 PM
  • 4D Lotto
    Thu 19Feb 14:00 PM
  • Papparich Central Kitchen
    Thu 19Feb 14:30 PM
  • Woolworths - The Glen
    Thu 19Feb 16:00 PM
  • On Luck Nursing Home - Donvale
    Fri 20Feb 10:15 AM
  • MLC - Kew
    Fri 20Feb 12:30 PM
  • Abbotsford Primary School
    Fri 20Feb 14:00 PM
  • Office Blessings - Abbotsford
    Fri 20Feb 15:30 PM
  • Ruyton Girls School
    Fri 20Feb 16:45 PM
  • Fan's Delicacy - Brighton
    Fri 20Feb 19:00 PM
    130 Church Street, Brighton
  • Fan's Kitchen - Hampton
    Fri 20Feb 19:30 PM
    417 Hampton Street, Hampton
  • Duck Duck Kitchen
    Fri 20Feb 20:00 PM
    694 Calder Hwy, Keilor
  • South Melbourne Market
    Sat 21Feb 09:00 AM
  • Sanctuary Lakes Shopping Centre
    Sat 21Feb 01:30 AM
    300 Point Cook Road, Point Cook
  • Seasons Botanic Hotel
    Sat 21Feb 13:30 PM
    348 St Kilda Road, Southbank
  • Glen Huntly Shops
    Sat 21Feb 15:00 PM
    Glen Huntly Station
  • Century City Glen Waverley
    Sat 21Feb 18:00 PM
  • Grazeland
    Sat 21Feb 18:00 PM
    20 Booker Street, Spotswood
  • Dragon Hot Pot - Burwood One
    Sat 21Feb 19:00 PM
  • Cathay Lodge LNY event
    Sat 21Feb 20:00 PM
  • Wedding - Tom and Olivia
    Sat 21Feb 20:00 PM
  • CS Square
    Sun 22Feb 10:30 AM
    Lake Street, Caroline Springs
  • NGV Melbourne
    Sun 22Feb 12:00 PM
    Dragon Dance - Great Hall 12pm 2pm
    NGV
  • Phap Hoa Temple Braybrook
    Sun 22Feb 12:00 PM
  • Woodgrove Shopping Centre - Melton
    Sun 22Feb 14:00 PM
  • House Blessing
    Sun 22Feb 15:30 PM
  • Ho Jiak
    Sun 22Feb 18:00 PM
    1 Rainbow Alley, Melbourne
  • Roti Road
    Sun 22Feb 19:30 PM
    189 Barkly Street. Footscray
  • Chef Huang's
    Sun 22Feb 19:30 PM
    40 Glenferrie Road, Malvern
  • Microsoft
    Tue 24Feb 11:00 AM
  • Setia
    Wed 25Feb 17:00 PM
  • Peninsula Grammar
    Thu 26Feb 09:00 AM
  • OES
    Thu 26Feb 16:15 PM
  • Dan Murphy's x Penfolds LNY
    Thu 26Feb 20:00 PM
  • Prime Value
    Thu 26Feb 21:00 PM
  • Cheltenham Manor
    Fri 27Feb 14:00 PM
  • UAG Flagstaff Hill
    Sat 28Feb 10:00 AM
  • Opalia Plaza
    Sat 28Feb 13:00 PM
    Exford Road, Weir Views
  • ACEC Chinese New Year Gala Ball
    Sat 28Feb 19:00 PM
  • Glen Waverley Lunar New Year and Lantern Festival
    Sun 01Mar 11:00 AM
    Kingsway, Glen Waverley 11am Stage Opening 12pm Dragon Dance and Jongs Show 2pm Street Blessings 5pm Dragon Dance and Jongs Show
    Website details
  • Wedding - Jeffrey and Chau
    Sun 15Mar 18:00 PM

Enquire About Training or Performance

Contact us to book a performance.

Contact Us