Youth group stays busy this time of year
Freddy Nguyen threw dollar bills in the air as whirling, swirling lions danced and swayed to a drum beat through his Oklahoma City restaurant.
As the owner of Park Harvey Sushi, Nguyen had invited this twirling, frenetic-paced presentation into his downtown eatery.
The costumed red and yellow lions were manned by youths from St. Andrew Dung-Lac Catholic Church, a Vietnamese church at 3115 SW 59. Under the guise of the brightly colored lion character, dancers paraded around the restaurant, scooping up money scattered on the floor and hanging from the ceiling.
“Every year, they come in here. It's tradition and it also brings luck and happiness,” Nguyen said.
It was a festive way to welcome in the Chinese New Year and Vietnamese New Year, which began Feb. 5.
The New Year celebrations— this year marking the Year of the Pig— often last for several weeks, which keeps the Lion Dance Association from St. Andrew extremely busy. The group has performed at dozens of metro area churches and businesses in a recent three-week time period, said Nghia Bui, 27, one of the group's leaders.
Bui said he became part of the church group when he was about 12 and the group had only one lion costume and about 10 members. Bui said back then, the group's leaders went door-to-door seeking out local businesses that would let them perform to raise funds for summer camp and other youth group activities.
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Times have changed. The Asian population in the metro area has grown, as it has around the country. According to the 2010 Census, the Asian population grew faster than any other race group in the United States between 2000 and 2010, about 43 percent.
The St. Andrew dance group also enjoyed a growth spurt.
Bui said the youth group that began with just one lion costume and fewer than a dozen members currently has about 65 young people who take turns bringing six lion characters to life. They entertain crowds at festivals and events marking the Chinese New Year and Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. A few days after capturing the attention of Nguyen's customers at Park Avenue Sushi, the group performed at their church's large, festive Tet celebration.
“We've gotten to the point that we don't have enough time slots for everybody,” Bui said, smiling.
With such popularity, the dance group puts in hours of rehearsal about six weeks before the New Year celebrations. The dancers' ultimate goal is to share their Vietnamese culture with the community-at-large and to spread the gospel. Along the way, they bond with a shared sense of community and cultural awareness.
“For the youth, it's to remind them of who we are and where we're from,” Bui said.
Another leader of the group, Henry Le, 28, said he enjoys teaching the dance to younger members of the group.
“This is basically a way that we celebrate our culture back home in Vietnam and in any other Asian country, so they can pass it down later,” he said.
Group member Jessica Le of Moore plays the cymbals for the lion dance. Though the dancers seemed as if they were dancing “free style,” they are telling a story, she said.
“They are showing how exciting the New Year is,” she said.