A ferocious competition brought dancers from five countries together in Alberta’s capital city on Friday. The Pan American Lion Dance Championship and the Canadian National Lion Dance Championship take place in Chinatown’s Kinistinâw Park over the weekend as part of the Edmonton Dragon Festival. The festival celebrates Chinese culture through food, performance and community events. It offers Chinatown food tours, a marketplace, a beer garden and live entertainment. The locally produced Chinatown documentary Shades of LuLu will premiere at a free movie night Friday, followed by a screening of Shaolin Soccer. On Saturday, CantoPop night brings live music from Cantonese and Asian pop culture to the main stage. Lion dancing is a traditional Chinese art form in which dancers bring elaborate costumes to life, to ward off evil spirits and to bring luck, joy and good fortune to the community. This is the first time the Pan American Traditional Lion Dance Championship has been held in Edmonton, bringing together dancers from Canada, Mexico, Panama, the U.S., and Trinidad and Tobago. The Canadian championship finals take place Saturday, and the Pan American finals will be held Sunday.
