When most students were finishing up their classes and heading home for the day, the members of Gió Nam Múa Lân gathered in front of UC Irvine’s Social Sciences building to prepare for what would be a two-hour practice. Hung Le Couture, who founded the group in 2004, watched its members go through their paces on a recent Thursday evening with quiet fondness and pride. In the hazy light afforded by the surrounding buildings and street lamps, instructors drummed and clacked their sticks against the rims of their instruments as they directed the lion dancers through their poses with little more than a word and the rhythm that echoed through the night.

For the full story, please visit https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/story/2024-02-23/in-the-year-of-the-dragon-gio-nam-mua-lan-celebrates-20-years.