The 2022 edition of the Tai Hang Mid-Autumn Fire Dance has been cancelled this year due to the rising Covid-19 cases in the city. This fire dance, which is one of the most iconic events of the city’s Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations, has not been held since 2019 due to the social-distancing rules imposed to combat the pandemic.
According to a statement on the official Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance page, the dance was supposed to take place between September 9 and September 11 this year. However, the government cancelled the event because of the increasing infection numbers within the city.
While there are other fire dragon dances held in the SAR, the one in Tai Hang is the most well-known and has taken place for more than 140 years. It is said to have first been held in 1880 when the villagers of Tai Hang constructed a fire dragon with joss sticks and set off firecrackers in a bid to end a plague.
Every year since then, the residents have built a 67-metre-long dragon out of 70,000 joss sticks, which is paraded through the neighbourhood for three nights during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The parade comprises 300 dancers, who are recruited and trained months in advance for the festivities.
Read about Hong Kong’s traditional lion and dragon dances here.
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