Locals perform the fire dragon dance. [Photo/WeChat account: gz_baiyunfabu]

The Junhe Street community of Guangzhou's Baiyun district held a holiday spectacle to promote the culture of fire dragons while celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival on Sept 14.

The fire dragon dance is a traditional folk dance that has been prevalent for hundreds of years throughout Chinese history, especially in the Baiyun villages of Shima, Qinghu, and Pingsha.

The locals perform this dance during Mid-Autumn Festival, acknowledging that it brings happiness, expels evil spirits, and prevents disasters. The fire dragon dance was marked as an intangible cultural heritage of Guangdong province in 2018.

In advance, the community constructed fire dragons with branch vines and banyan leaves (large elliptical green leaves) that were ornamented throughout public places, including the Fire Dragon Park, to display the unique charm of the fire dragons.  

In addition, the community carried out interactions, such as teaching residents how to make fire dragons by hand instead of holding an authentic fire dragon dance like before, allowing residents to taste the charm of fire dragon culture immersively.

Li Qiantong, a resident of Baiyun district, said that the most attractive part for her was taking pictures with fire dragons. The exciting activities expanded her horizons and deepened her appreciation for the tradition of fire dragon dance.