After a long hiatus, I’m so pleased to return to my beloved Halloween blog! Thank you so much to my friends and family for encouraging me to pick the mantle back up and continue doing what I love. Extra special thanks, too, to my online friends for their patience and support.
To kick off my return, I wanted to talk about one of my favorite traditional costumes in the whole world.
Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year falls on January 31st this year, though its celebrations technically last for over two weeks. It’s a celebration of the first day of the traditional Chinese calendar, also known as the Spring Festival.
If you’re lucky enough to be around people who actively celebrate this ancient holiday, you’ll likely see fireworks, the exchange of red envelopes of money, lanterns, and of course…
The Dragon
The dragon is an important figure in Chinese culture. It wields huge power over the elements and represents strength and good luck. Its appearance at the New Years’ celebrations signifies good luck for the community at large.
A traditional Chinese dragon isn’t quite like Smaug from The Hobbit or Draco from Dragonheart. The Chinese dragon is much more serpent-like with a crest running down its spine and two long whiskers.
The Costume
A traditional Chinese dragon costume is constructed out of an array of beautifully colorful papers, forming the head and snakelike body. Depending on the size of the celebration (and the size of the dragon), any number of people can be underneath the dragon costume, making it undulate and dance down the street.
The dancers control the dragon’s movement with carefully coordinated steps and handles attached to the underside of the structure.
Some dragons aren’t really costumes at all, but more puppets that are streams of cloth manipulated with poles. Dancers can also wear individual dragon costumes for dances and plays.
I absolutely love seeing the dragon snaking along with a parade, colorful and terrifying. If you have the opportunity, I highly recommend attending a celebration to see the dragon dance. If your little ones get spooked, explain to them that the dragon is often seen as a protector- so much so that it became a figure associated with the Emperor.
The magic of such a powerful figure brought to life, up close and personal, is one of the biggest reasons I love costumes as much as I do. They transport us away from the usual and into the whimsical (or scary).
This will be the year of the Horse, so those of you turning 96, 84, 72, 60, 48, 36, 24, or 12 this year should party it up. Learn all about Chinese New Year traditions and head out to the nearest parade!
Have a safe and joyous Chinese New Year, everyone! Xīn Nián Hǎo Ya!
