Sunday 8 October 2017

The dance of the Fire Dragon

The Tai Hang Fire Dragon has its origin in 1880. At that time, Tai Hang was only a small Hakka village and the villagers, most of them farmers and fishermen, led a simple and peaceful life. The tale started when the villagers once killed a serpent in a stormy night, but in the next morning , the dead body of the serpent had disappeared. A few days later, a plague spread out in Tai Hang and many people died of infection. Meanwhile, a village elder saw Buddha one night in his dream and was told to perform a Fire Dragon Dance and to burn fire crackers in the Mid-Autumn Festival. The sulphur in the fire crackers drove away the disease and the villagers were saved. Since then, every year the Tai Hang residents would perform the Fire Dragon Dance for three nights in the Mid-Autumn Festival in memory of the incident. The Fire Dragon is altogether 220 feet long with its body divided into 32 segments, all of which are stuffed with straw and stuck full of incense sticks. So it is known as the “ Fire-Dragon ”

That is what the official site of the Tai Hain Fire Dragon Dance says about the origin of this spectacular event. Tai Hang is now a vibrant part of the city but following tradition the fire dragon dance is still held every year during the mid-autumn festival. For three hours over three hundred men dance with the drum beats, carrying the 220 feet straw dragon complete with its head, two pearls and a tail, and with burning incense sticks all over. The head itself weighs 48 kg, and it requires immense skill to build the dragon as well as to dance with it.

Through the evening as the dance progressed, the air became heavy with the fragrance of the burning incense, their smoke bringing in a certain mysticism. With the beating drums and the tremendous energy of the dancers, the atmosphere was captivating. The incense sticks very obviously burn the dancers, but the pain didn't seem to bother them at all. They rode high in the passion of the vibrant dance. As the dancers swung the fiery dragon, the heat from the thousands of tiny fires engulfed the bystanders. The whole ambience keeps the spectators captivated a complete immersion.

The event timing is 8-11pm for the three nights. Though this year, to help the visitors, a fourth night was added to the event as well, deviating from tradition. 

I was told that though the event rarely starts on time yet still to reach at least an hour earlier to find a good position for viewing. The event mainly takes place at Wun Sha street and the place is barricaded for the spectators. It was just about 7pm when I walked in from Tung Lo Wan Road. I could see people already lining up behind the barricades and a second row had started to form behind them. 

A traffic warden advised me to go further down Wun Sha street. As I did, was surprised to find the it almost empty and started wondering if the dragon would even come that far. But the crowd gradually built up and by the next 30 mins, there wasn't much space left. However, what I also observed was as the evening progressed, the place I stood got much quieter. On the other hand noticed while I was leaving at about 9:30 pm, the crowd overflowing at the entrance to the street. So moving down is definitely advised, especially if you have arrived late. However, most of the activities happen in the middle portion of the street, around Sun Chun and Shepherd street, there is a possibility you may miss out on some displays. This is where all the photographers with impressive camera gear set up their tent. I did manage some shots going full zoom on my 18-200mm though. 

Despite the warnings of a late start, the event actually started on time, exactly at 8pm. But just as the dragon was about to make its appearance, a sharp shower descended causing a small pause in the course of the events. Thankfully, the rest of the evening remained dry.

Photographing the Fire dragon dance

If you are thinking of photographing the event, be warned, it is a major challenge. It is a popular event and everyone in the crowd queue up with all forms of photographing aide desperate for their best shots of the dragon and themselves, aka selfies. You fight for shoulder and elbow space and for someone my size, I was continuously getting squished as the fervour built up. At one point a heavy bearded man, definitely a tourist, jumped in for a photo opportunity and almost toppled me. He  seemed close to 7 feet and probably didn't even notice the speck which was me. I caught his attention by being very vocal about my displeasure, but he never apologised. Thankfully he left as the dragon moved on, probably looking for his next victim.

So, after all the fight you think you have captured the perfect frame, but alas. Unclaimed hands, heads, torsos and camera gear frustratingly pop up every time into your pictures. It is good the event lasts for three hours giving you ample opportunities to find a few good shots.

The other challenge is the light. The place is not very brightly lit either and as I mentioned, the energy is scintillating making it even more difficult as everything ends up in a blur. You probably would be shooting hand held, so go as high ISO as you can and hope the noise doesn't show up. I shot at 1600 ISO, though could have gone higher but I like the blur to depict motion. As always, used aperture priority with exposure override, spot metering and auto focus. I love the 18-200 Nikon lens, very versatile, but a wide angle would have made some of the shots a lot easier.

So here I am sharing some photographs from the evening.

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Young girls walking past with lanterns celebrating the mid-autumn festival

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The pretty little things are so cute

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
They happily pose for the camera too

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The celebrities

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The music arrives. Drums for the dance

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The drums march through the street

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
And the dragon arrives. The head with the pearls on both sides

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The crowd goes berserk at the first sight, but the energy remains through the whole event 

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The pearls, the fast twirling balls give the impression of shiny pearls

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The 48kg dragon head

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The incense stick spiked body and tail

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The dance continues

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Flipping around the 220 feet dragon

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
As the dancers take a break, the bagpipes arrive. Remnants of a colonial past probably

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Bagpipes and Highland dancers in Hong Kong

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The Scottish performance

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Time to relight the dragon. Fresh incense sticks being gathered

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Fresh incense sticks being lit up

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
One of the pearls being freshly built

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
This took a while

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
As I said

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The other pearls being set up

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The head being prepared a bit further up the street

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
All set,the dragon rises

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The Fire Dragon dance continues

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The energy of the dancers was captivating

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
As the crowd recedes I am starting to get better shots

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
The 'Tail' takes a break

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance

Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance
My last shot of the event, the air is now full of smoke and fragrance. The drums still beat