A crowd gathers on the festive occasion of Chinese New Year, awaiting the performance of a traditional lion dance. This captivating dance is meant to bring good fortune for the upcoming year. Suddenly, a large and colorful lion costume sways onto the stage, leaving the audience amazed and intrigued. Children gaze at the colossal creature, and as it shakes its head, some are startled, while others are overcome with laughter. Guiding this motion is Kelly Bian (11), the head of the lion.

Before performances like these, Bian and her team must examine the location of the act. With this information, the lion dancing team determines what techniques will be utilized in their intricate and precise routine.

“[The location] really dictates what we’re going to do for our performance,” Bian said. “If it’s a smaller area, we have some activities. If it’s bigger, we go out to the audience and interact with other people.”

When the show begins, Bian confidently performs as the head of the lion. She particularly takes joy in engaging with the crowd, who tend to react in numerous ways.

“I don’t really find it super nerve-wracking,” Bian said. “It’s just like any other practice. When it comes to audience interaction, that’s where I find lion dancing to be really fulfilling and fun.”

Bian has learned about a number of traditions that are a part of lion dancing, which she incorporates in her performances. These customs have a major role in the dance and signify prevalent beliefs in Chinese culture.

“Some new things I learned about my culture is the way instruments and traditions interact and the importance of these traditions,” Bian said. “For example, in mostly all lion dancing [performances], you’re supposed to have something called ‘eating the lettuce.’ In this part of the routine, the lion picks up lettuce, shreds it and throws it out to the crowd. This [symbolizes] getting rich in Chinese.”

Along with acquiring knowledge about customs, Bian has been mentored in lion dancing by a sifu – her teacher – and her sihings – meaning “older brothers” in Cantonese. She met her instructors at the St. Louis Chinese Language School, where she practices lion dance. Over time, one of her sihings, Erick Lynn, has identified Bian’s improvement in the communicational aspect of the dance.

“When Kelly first started to train with us, [she] was very quiet,” Lynn said. “As she started to learn more, she became very outspoken.”

This is Bian’s second year as a captain of the lion dancing team of STLCLS. Due to this, Lynn presumes that Bian will be able to employ her experience with directing the team in real world circumstances.

“The role of [being the captain and] being able to step into that leadership role will help in [Bian’s] role at school, and then in college and work as well,” Lynn said.

Bian’s contributions to the team extend further than her position as captain, such as assisting her novice teammates in getting the hang of things. Moreover, she has the responsibility of handling one of the main parts of the lion.

“Kelly has been both a tail and a head,” fellow lion dancer Garon Agrawal (12) said. “Currently, she’s a head, and she contributes a lot to the team by helping them in performances. She has a good influence in helping the younger, newer members.”

However, Bian was not always proficient at her craft. Due to an initial lack of experience and knowledge about anything related to lion dance, she had a rough start.

“I grew up with [lion dancing], but I didn’t understand the significance of it,” Bian said. “At the time, I wasn’t physically active, so I was super bad at it.”

Since then, Bian has improved in many ways. Lynn credits Bian with being present during practices and using criticism from teachers to grasp concepts quickly.

“You don’t have to tell Kelly to do something over and over and over again,” Lynn said. “Kelly will do it, take notes and teach people around her as well.”

Although Bian started lion dancing in eighth grade simply for fun, she soon realized that the activity became her passion. This encouraged her to gain beneficial life skills and a deeper understanding of her culture.

“I am really grateful that I started [lion dancing],” Bian said. “It made me connect more to my Chinese culture and value it a lot more. I also learned a lot about perseverance, how to communicate with people and general leadership.”

Lion dancing has fortified Bian’s identity by granting her access to Chinese folk traditions. She is involved in her culture in many respects, but lion dancing gives her an opportunity to share it with others.

“I feel like I’m [more strongly] connected to my Chinese culture,” Bian said. “[There are] many ways I interact with my Chinese culture. I eat Chinese food, I go to Chinese school every Sunday and I speak Chinese. Lion dancing is a way for me to interact with my culture in a physical way, while giving back to the community and spreading my culture.”