Lunar New Year's Day Parade expected to bring thousands to Philadelphia's Chinatown
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The countdown is on to an annual city tradition. The Lunar New Year's Day Parade, hosted by the Philadelphia Suns, is expected to draw thousands of people to Chinatown.
The highlight of the parade is the lion dance, a traditional Chinese dance accompanied by drumming and firecrackers, that is performed to scare off evil spirits.
For the last several months, the Suns have been practicing the lion dance at a basketball court in the basement of a church in Chinatown.
"This team specifically does a lot of big acrobatic moves that we've never done before," Chad Jung, the lion dance manager for the Philadelphia Suns, said. "So it's really important to show what we're capable of as an organization."
Jenny Loo, one of the dancers, has been inspired to join the Suns ever since she was 5 or 6 years old when she first saw the organization perform at the parade. The same joy she felt as a child watching, she now gets to spread to others as a lion dancer.
"Some of the rewarding aspect[s] that you see—little children get very happy," Loo said. "They get so frantic and excited about seeing the lion."
The lion dance is done in pairs, with one dancer portraying the head of the lion; the other, the tail. Both dancers need stamina, strength, flexibility and balance.
The performance involves "getting people [who] are able to not be afraid to fly or stand on someone's shoulders 10, 15 feet in the air, and having someone who's strong enough as a base for someone to stand on, and also being coordinated," Jung said.
During the parade, you might see a dancer throw lettuce, which is green, representing money. Oranges represent gold, another symbol of wealth.
Loo is hoping for a prosperous new year. She said lion dancing keeps her connected to her roots.
"For lion dancing, it's not that well known," Loo said. "When I participate in it, I feel a little bit more involved in my culture as well [as] my history, so that's why I really enjoy it."
The Lunar New Year's Day Parade begins at 10th and Spring Streets on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 11 a.m. The community will gather to usher in the Year of the Dragon.
"I'm actually so excited," Loo said. "I feel like there's many fortune[s] coming, many rewards coming."