Student Profile: Ansis Cheung

Student Profile: Ansis Cheung, the Lion Dancer

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups and organizations—from ballet to break dancing—senior Ansis Cheung’s dancing is truly unique. Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA) since 2005, primarily in the Lion Dance group that consists of 20 to 30 active performers. This group specializes in the performance of the Chinese Lion and Dragon dance for any occasion. As president of the Youth Group, Ansis leads other members during performances and social functions alike. His group meets every Wednesday night for three-hour Lion Dance practices; in the fall and winter, they meet every Saturday to practice Dragon dance as well.

SGVCCA is “like a second family” to Ansis, who added that he’s learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage” during his time in the group.

His group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Notable performances include a half-time show for the LA Clippers and a surprise performance for the Dog Whisperer. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled, “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel.”

In addition, his group participates in the LA Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant annually. This past Feb. 6, the Youth Group also participated in the Alhambra Chinese New Year Parade.

Ansis explained that lion dancing is not “dancing in the traditional sense”—instead, it is derived from Chinese martial arts, and the many movements involved are used to express the lion’s character and emotions, which range from anger to hunger to happiness.

The performers have trainers who choreograph their stage routines and are “extremely dedicated because like us, they are volunteers. [Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance,” Ansis explained. In addition to stage routines, performers can also do freestyle lion dancing, which involves performers using the lion as they wish.

In the future, Ansis wants to continue lion dancing with SGVCCA. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return to SGVCCA often to help out with the group.

(more juicy details to come...! )

Student Profile: Ansis Cheung, the Lion Dancer

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups and organizations—from ballet to break dancing—senior Ansis Cheung’s dancing is truly unique. Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA) since 2005, primarily in the Lion Dance group that consists of 20 to 30 active performers. [I think this last sentene would work better split into two sentences -first about Ansis, then another explaining what the Lion Dance group really is] This group specializes in the performance of the Chinese Lion and Dragon dance for any occasion. As president of the Youth Group, Ansis leads other members during performances and social functions alike. His group meets every Wednesday night for three-hour Lion Dance practices; in the fall and winter, they meet every Saturday to practice Dragon dance as well.

SGVCCA is “like a second family” to Ansis, who added that he’s learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage” during his time in the group.

His group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Notable performances include a half-time show for the LA Clippers and a surprise performance for the Dog Whisperer. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled, “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel.”

In addition, his group [annually] participates in the LA Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant annually. This past [On] Feb. 6, the Youth Group also participated in the Alhambra Chinese New Year Parade.

Ansis explained that lion dancing is not “dancing in the traditional sense”—instead, it is derived from Chinese martial arts, and the many movements involved are used to express the lion’s character and emotions, which range from anger to hunger to happiness.

The performers have trainers who choreograph their stage routines and are “extremely dedicated because like us, they are volunteers. [Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance,” Ansis explained. [Again, I think this last sentence would work better split into two sentences - one containing the quote, one without] In addition to stage routines, performers can also do freestyle lion dancing, which involves performers using the lion as they wish.

In the future, Ansis wants to continue lion dancing with SGVCCA. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return to SGVCCA often to help out with the group.

(more juicy details to come...! ).

Student Profile: Ansis Cheung, the Lion Dancer

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups and organizations—from ballet to break dancing—senior Ansis Cheung’s dancing is truly unique. Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA) since 2005, primarily in the Lion Dance group. This group, consisting of 20 to 30 active performers, specializes in the performance of the Chinese Lion and Dragon dance for any occasion. As president of the Youth Group, Ansis leads other members during performances and social functions alike. His group meets every Wednesday night for three-hour Lion Dance practices; in the fall and winter, they meet every Saturday to practice Dragon dance as well.

SGVCCA is “like a second family” to Ansis, who added that he’s learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage” during his time in the group.

His group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Notable performances include a half-time show for the LA Clippers and a surprise performance for the Dog Whisperer. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled, “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel.”

In addition, his group annually participates in the LA Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant. On Feb. 6, the Youth Group also participated in the Alhambra Chinese New Year Parade.

Ansis explained that lion dancing is not “dancing in the traditional sense”—instead, it is derived from Chinese martial arts, and the many movements involved are used to express the lion’s character and emotions, which range from anger to hunger to happiness.

The performers have trainers who choreograph their stage routines and are “extremely dedicated because like us, they are volunteers," Ansis explained, adding, "[Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance." In addition to stage routines, performers can also do freestyle lion dancing, which involves performers using the lion as they wish.

In the future, Ansis wants to continue lion dancing with SGVCCA. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return to SGVCCA often to help out with the group.

Student Profile: Ansis Cheung, the Lion Dancer

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups and organizations—from ballet to break dancing—senior Ansis Cheung’s dancing is truly unique. [Since 2005,] Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA) since 2005, primarily in the Lion Dance group. This group, consisting of 20 to 30 active performers, specializes in the performance of the Chinese Lion and Dragon dance for any occasion. As president of the Youth Group, Ansis leads other members during performances and social functions alike. His group [Saying the group instead of his group would probably be better] meets every Wednesday night for three-hour Lion Dance practices; in the fall and winter, they meet every Saturday to practice Dragon dance as well.

SGVCCA is “like a second family” to Ansis, who added that he’s learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage” during his time in the group.

His group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Notable performances include a half-time show for the LA Clippers and a surprise performance for the Dog Whisperer. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled, “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel.” [I'm not sure how to fix this, but it seems a little random having a few words there about the Dog Whisperer before jumping back to the Clippers. Maybe you could just put that part in an individual sentence at the end?]

In addition, his group annually participates in the LA Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant. On Feb. 6, the Youth Group also participated in the Alhambra Chinese New Year Parade.

Ansis explained that lion dancing is not “dancing in the traditional sense”—instead, it is derived from Chinese martial arts, and the many movements involved are used to express the lion’s character and emotions, which range from anger to hunger to happiness.

The performers have trainers who choreograph their stage routines and are “extremely dedicated because like us, they are volunteers," Ansis explained, adding, "[Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance." In addition to stage routines, performers can also do freestyle lion dancing, which involves performers using the lion as they wish.

In the future, Ansis wants to continue lion dancing with SGVCCA. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return to SGVCCA often to help out with the group..

Um, just so you know, that little copyediting stuff up there was me
Not Velinda =/
Sorry!!

UPDATED!

Ansis Cheung, Chinese Lion/Dragon Dancer
Ringing in the Chinese New Year/Year of the Tiger
Crouching Lion, Hidden Tiger

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups—from ballet troupes to breakdancing crews—senior Ansis Cheung’s form of dancing is truly unique. Since 2005, Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA), primarily as head of the Youth Group. SGVCCA, a non-profit organization established in 1968, promotes the enrichment of Chinese language and culture and hopes to share these interests with others. The Youth Group consists of 20 to 30 active performers and specializes in Chinese lion and dragon dances for numerous occasions. As president of the Youth Group, Ansis leads his fellow dancers during their performances and social functions [can be deleted to save space].

The movements in lion dance are based on Chinese martial arts, and involve two performers in a lion costume mimicking the creature's movements to express its varied emotions. Dragon dance (wǔ long), on the other hand, entails a team of eight to ten performers bearing a dragon supported by poles and performing amazing stunts through carefully coordinated teamwork.

Clients often contact the organization via email or phone call to arrange a dance performance request, and SGVCCA adult advisers schedule these requests into the performers’ schedule. “Sometimes the performances are booked nearly a year in advance,” Ansis noted. Since he and his fellow dancers are all volunteers, the money they earn from these performances go directly to SGVCCA to purchase and maintain equipment, fund group functions, and so forth.

To keep up with deluge of performance requests from clients, Youth Group members meet weekly and sometimes bi-weekly to hone their skills as lion dancers. During the autumn and winter months, they also practice dragon dance to prepare for upcoming Chinese New Year parades.

The trainers who choreograph performers’ stage routines are “extremely dedicated” because they, like all SGVCCA performers, are volunteers. "[Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance," Ansis explained. Aside from stage routines, lion dancers can also do freestyle lion dancing, which involves manipulating the lion costume as they wish [can be deleted to save space].

SGVCCA annually participates in the Los Angeles Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant. The Youth Group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Last Dec. 13, members performed a half-time show for a Los Angeles Clippers game at the Staples Center. During the game, they were featured on the Jumbotron and had a group spotlight. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled. “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel,” he added.

“I would like to thank everybody, especially the leaders, who came before me in this group,” Ansis declared, “They have been a great inspiration for me in most of the things I do.” [can delete if I have too many quotes]

During his time in SGVCCA, he has learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage,” Ansis noted. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return often to help the group that has been “like a second family” to him these past five years.

NOTE:

I found this info on the internet:

Lion Dance: For a proper lion dance, the movements must match the music played by a minimum of three pieces: drum, gong and cymbal. Either the person performing in the lion head or the drummer initiates the movement and signals the other, so that the movement and music is synchronized. Certain movements must follow a specified sequence: for example, the 3-Star movement, then the 7-Star movement, followed by High Dance. Variations to the basic beats help keep the music lively. The loud music, along with the firecrackers and lion movements, are used to scare away “evil spirits” so that good luck will follow. Lion dances are performed to bring luck and to ward off evil spirits, as with the beginning of the Lunar New Year and grand opening of businesses, and now – minus the firecrackers – at weddings and even red egg/ginger parties celebrating the birth of a baby.

Dragon Dance: The correct combination and proper timing of the different parts of the dragon are very important to make a successful dance. Any mistakes made by even some of the performers would spoil the whole performance. The basic skills are simple to learn, however to become a competent performer takes dedicated training until movements become second nature and complex formations can be achieved – which rely not only on the skill of the individual member, but on concentration by the team as a whole to move in co-operation.


Do you think it'd be a good idea to include some of these juicy details in my article? (Ansis didn't really *describe in detail* how the whole dance thing works.)

THE SHORT VERSION (W/O the red parts indicated in previous post)

While many AHS students hail from various dance groups—from ballet troupes to breakdancing crews—senior Ansis Cheung’s form of dancing is truly unique. Since 2005, Ansis has participated in the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association (SGVCCA), primarily as head of the Youth Group. SGVCCA, a non-profit organization established in 1968, promotes the enrichment of Chinese language and culture and hopes to share these interests with others. The Youth Group consists of 20 to 30 active performers and specializes in Chinese lion and dragon dances for numerous occasions.

The movements in lion dance are based on Chinese martial arts, and involve two performers in a lion costume mimicking the creature's movements to express its varied emotions. Dragon dance,
on the other hand, entails a team of eight to ten performers bearing a dragon supported by poles and performing amazing stunts through carefully coordinated teamwork.

Clients often contact the organization via email or phone call to arrange a dance performance request, and SGVCCA adult advisers schedule these requests into the performers’ schedule. “Sometimes the performances are booked nearly a year in advance,” Ansis noted. Since he and his fellow dancers are all volunteers, the money they earn from these performances go directly to SGVCCA to purchase and maintain equipment, fund group functions, and so forth.

To keep up with deluge of performance requests from clients, Youth Group members meet weekly and sometimes bi-weekly to hone their skills as lion dancers. During the autumn and winter months, they also practice dragon dance to prepare for upcoming Chinese New Year parades.

The trainers who choreograph performers’ stage routines are “extremely dedicated” because they, like all SGVCCA performers, are volunteers. "[Their] motivation, like ours, is the love of lion dance," Ansis explained.

SGVCCA annually participates in the Los Angeles Chinatown parade and Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant. The Youth Group performed 44 times in 2008 and 36 times in 2009. Last Dec. 13, members performed a half-time show for a Los Angeles Clippers game at the Staples Center. During the game, they were featured on the Jumbotron and had a group spotlight. “It was really cool to do a performance at half court with the whole audience in Staples Center peering down at [us],” Ansis recalled. “The best part was when we got to high-five the whole Clipper’s team in the tunnel,” he added.

During his time in SGVCCA, he has learned “everything from business ethic to confidence on stage,” Ansis noted. Even when he leaves for college next year, he hopes to return often to help the group that has been “like a second family” to him these past five years.