Sabah ‘Sifu’ coaches Australian lion dancers
KOTA KINABALU: Lee Chee-Fat, 56, a popular Lion Dance ‘Sifu’ from Sabah, was invited to Australia to coach the local Rockhampton Lion Dance team recently.
Lee said he was very happy when he encountered very enthusiastic and willing students in Rockhampton.
In a special interview with the local radio, ABC Capricornia, Lee emphasised the important attributes of the Lion Dance. A good Lion Dance required intelligence to bring the combination of sport, culture, music and art as well as courageous team work during the performance, he said.
“Through a huge object to express the logical character of the lion, examples like joy, anger, moodiness, hunger and drowsiness is never an easy job and thus the training and cooperation among the performers is very important,” he added.
Lee also explained that the Lion Dance performance also pays attention to drama as the performance always tells what the Lion is doing.
He also expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Rockhampton Chinese Association and to Madam Mei Wright, the Association president for 2018, who sent the invitation to come to Australia and coach the local troupe.
Lee said, “We can see the commitment of the Association in promoting this activity.”
Lee fell in love with the lion dance in 1975. He became a Master Trainer at Inanam Yick Nam Primary School Dragon, Unicorn and Lion Dance Troupe in 1985.
He has led the school troupe and won several gold awards in international lion dance tournaments since 2003.
In fact, he was encouraged by the Chief Minister of Sabah in 2005 to find a Lion Dance Institution to train all those interested in Lion and Dragon dance activities. It was founded to be all inclusive and not just focusing on one school or one ethnic group.
Since then, Lee has become a ‘flying coach’. He travels and conducts coaching in many Asian countries.
The Lion Dance originated in China but is now a popular event during the Asian Games.
Rockhampton was Lee’s first move to expand his coaching to a western country.
“With more participation of the western countries, I would wish the Lion Dance to become an Olympic event soon,” Lee said.
He pointed out in particular how impressed he was with Rockhampton as a clean, relaxed and friendly city, and a good example of great multicultural living.
“Have you ever seen a Chinese Association recruit non-Chinese members? Have you seen a Chinese Association led by a nonChinese? This happened in Rockhampton! The people in this multiracial society are really able to love each other and live in harmony!” Lee said.
The multiracial team has among them the president, Mei Wright, originally from China and married to a local man of European descent; Vice President Dorothy Khoo of European descent; alongside her husband and Secretary, Dr Paul Khoo, of Chinese descent from Singapore; and the Lion Dance team leader, Stanley Chin, of Chinese descent from Sabah.
The committee also has members formerly from China, Hong Kong, Solomon Islands, and a former Malaysian national who is Indian. They are actively involved in Chinese cultural pastimes.
Stanley Chin came to work in Rockhampton for the government as an engineer. After six years of living in Rockhampton, he came to realise that his children knew nothing of Chinese cultural traditions.
Missing activities such as Chinese New Year, Chinese chess and Chinese history, Stanley thought he would work hard for his children to become the next new generation of Australians who were in touch with their heritage.
He is passionate about the significant part that the Lion Dance played in celebrating Chinese culture.
“People with vision, love and effort like the above mentioned, make the multicultural people in Australia sweet and beautiful,” Lee said.
Lee was told that the Local Rockhampton Regional Council was very supportive of the Association. Last year, the Association was invited to bring the traditional culture and some activities to the city at the Moon and Lantern Festival in September.
A new dragon as well as the lions performed for the festival which attracted 6,000 visitors. The Moon Festival this year will be held at the new Riverbank development and was hoping to attract an even larger crowd.
Lee became an international dragon and lion dance judge in 1998, the same year that he obtained an international dragon and lion dance coaching certificate.
At the international Dragon and Lion Dance convention held in Guangzhou, China, Lee was invited to attend as an honoured guest.
The convention informed the delegates that Lion Dancing was becoming very popular globally with many countries encouraging their schools to officially train their students.