舞狮表演活跃在旧金山

黄连英

The Chinese New Year parade isnt the only place to watch a lion dance in the San Francisco Bay Area. At weddings， grand openings of new businesses and other celebrations， the traditional Chinese art is performed year-round， thanks to the efforts of lion dance groups and young people increasingly embracing the activity.

Connie Lu， a senior at Lincoln High School in San Francisco. She performed as the lions “head” at a high school competition during the weekend in San Franciscos Chinatown to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Lus team—11 girls and 2 boys—participated in the competition， along with four other teams of about 100 contestants. The event also attracted hundreds of tourists.

Blinking big eyes and shaking the body， the yellow lion played by Lu and her teammate jumped up on a narrow bench to the beat of drums and gongs and picked up a hanging flower bouquet. The dancers skillful movements won a big round of applause from the audience.

Accompanied by beating drums and clashing cymbals， lion dances imitate a lions movements， such as scratching， shaking the body and licking the fur. Each performance also has a unique meaning. Lus performance tells the story of a lion who tries to cross a river to get a flower for his friend， but he is afraid of the river at first. Finally， he conquers the challenge and gets the flower to his friend.

Saturdays competition was the second following last years success， according to one of the organizers， LionDanceME. “We want to show to the public young Asian Americans carrying and celebrating AAPI heritage.” the organizer said. The first Inter-League High School Lion Dance Competition received positive feedback and encouragement for participants and also attracted hundreds of tourists to Chinatown.

Over the past few years， lion dance groups in the Bay Area have participated in rallies and marches to bring awareness to anti-Asian hate.

（材料來自“ChinaDaily”网站，有删改）

1. What does the underlined word “embracing” mean in Paragraph 1？

A. Being against.          B. Being enthusiastic about.

C. Losing interest in.    D. Being ignorant of.

2. How many contestants participated in the competition？

A. About 13.           B. About 111.

C. About 100.          D. About 113.

3. Which of the following isnt mentioned according to Paragraph 3 and Paragraph 4？

A. How to perform a lion dance.

B. The popularity of Lus team.

C. The influence of the lion dance.

D. The meaning behind Lus performance.

4. Whats the purpose of this passage？

A. To report a competition about the lion dance.

B. To arouse peoples interest in lion dances.

C. To help our community to overcome the difficulties.

D. To call on people to participate in lion dances.

1. B。解析：词义猜测题。材料第一段画线词所在的句子大意为：由于舞狮团体的努力和年轻人越来越喜欢这项活动，在婚礼、新企业的开业活动和其他庆祝活动中，中国传统艺术——舞狮一年四季都在上演。由此，“embracing”应有“欣然接受”之意。故选B。

2. D。解析：细节理解题。根据材料第二段中的“Lus team—11 girls and 2 boys—participated in the competition， along with four other teams of about 100 contestants”，我們可知，Lu的队伍有11名女孩和2名男孩，共13人，另外4个参赛队伍大约共有100人。由此可知，大约有113人参加了比赛。故选D。

3. C。解析：细节理解题。材料第三段第一个句子和第四段第一个句子讲述了如何舞狮，故排除A；根据材料第三段第二个句子，我们可知Lu的队伍很受欢迎，故排除B；根据材料第四段第三个和第四个句子，我们可知Lu的表演讲述了一只狮子为了给朋友摘花而试图过河的故事，故排除D。文章未提到C选项的相关内容，故选C。

4. A。解析：推理判断题。本文是一篇新闻报道，围绕“旧金山唐人街举行的庆祝亚太裔传统月（Asian Pacific American Heritage Month）的一场比赛”展开。故选A。