Well tonight is the calm before the storm. Over the last weekend we had four venues with seven separate shows. Tomorrow we start our busiest week for the entire year. Chinese New Year officially starts on Thursday February 7th this year. This is always our busiest time of year for lion dances since they are traditionally used to bring good fortune during the new year. While the Lunar New Year celebration lasts for an entire lunar cycle, (approximately 14 days) our busiest days usually surround the first day and the last day, the Lantern Festival. Overall we have more venues than days in the month most occurring during the upcoming week. This week alone we are currently scheduled for 25 shows between Tuesday February 6th and Sunday February 10th.
25 Shows in less than a weeks time can be quite a drain on our performers since most of them are working professionals with day jobs that do not revolve around kung fu. There are always a dedicated few who make all of the shows and really give it their all to ensure we put on a good performance and portray our school and its kung fu with the honor and commitment it deserves. But these few are generally not enough to fulfill all of the requests that we get. Since these people will be involved in every show, it becomes easy for them to get burned out and exhausted.
Generally I both plan and perform in some aspect of every show that we do unless I have to split the troupe into multiple teams to do two shows simultaneously in two separate locations. This year I have had some assistance and it has been greatly appreciated since it does help relieve some of the stress that this time of year brings.
I really do enjoy the Lunar New Year. Its symbolism, customs, and cultural traditions make it a joyful time for families, especially the family bond shared among members of a kung fu school. With so many shows and all that it takes to make them happen, it does tend to distract me and detract from the generally lighthearted joyous nature that this holiday brings. I hope that in future years our school will be able to grow larger with more capable students so that the work may be divided among many so that no one person or small group of people are responsible for every aspect of our lion dancing tradition. In that way every one may participate in a wonderful tradition and still be conscious enough to enjoy it.
