Shenzhen revive century-old fish lantern dance

The Shatoujiao district of Shenzhen has a long though often obscure history. The place is a sort of landmark in Chinese History. The district's Zhongying Street is alive with vendors peddling an abundance of goods that would have been difficult to find two decades ago. The early history of the people there is not so well known.

Thethreehundredyearolddancehasbeenonlyrecently promotedtostatusaspartofChina'sNationalIntangible CulturalHeritage.

One of the area's cultural distinctions is known as the Shatoujiao Fish Lantern Dance. The three hundred year old dance has been only recently promoted to status as part of China's National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The Zhongying Street is busy. But the hive of activity is not connected with the usual flurry of trading and business that characterizes the street. Local people came out to celebrate the fact that their native dance is now part of China's cultural heritage. Wu Tianqi, an inheritor of the fish lantern dance was presented with the official tablet. He promised to continue promoting the dance, bringing it to a wider audience.

Thethreehundredyearolddancehasbeenonlyrecently promotedtostatusaspartofChina'sNationalIntangible CulturalHeritage.

Dating back three centuries, the fish lantern dance derives from the prayers of fishermen for a good catch. The local folk culture began to disappear during the 1950's. Then it was revived by villagers under the encouragement of the municipal culture department. A team to perform the fish lantern dance team has been assembled. It's performed more than 160 shows in its neighboring places like Guangzhou and Hong Kong.