Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that answer the question.
Query: Is there a dragon dance?
During the Han Dynasty, different forms of the dragon dance were described in ancient texts. Rain dance performed at times of drought may involve the use of figures of dragon as Chinese dragon was associated with rain in ancient China, for example the dragon Yinglong was considered a rain deity, and the Shenlong had the power to determine how much wind and rain to bring. According to the Han Dynasty text "Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals" by Dong Zhongshu, as part of a ritual to appeal for rain, clay figures of the dragons were made and children or adults may then perform a dance. The number of dragons, their length and colour, as well as the performers may vary according to the time of year. Other dances involving dragons may be found in a popular form of entertainment during the Han Dynasty, the "baixi" (百戲) variety shows, where performers called "mime people" (象人) dressed up as various creatures such as beasts, fish and dragons. In his "Lyric Essay on Western Capital" (西京賦) Zhang Heng recorded various performances such as performers who dressed as a green dragon playing a flute, and a fish-dragon act where fish transformed into a dragon. A version of the fish-dragon dance called "fish-dragon extending" (魚龍曼延) was also performed at the Han court to entertain foreign guests – in this dance a mythical beast of Shenli (舍利之獸) transforms into flounder, then to a dragon. These ancient dances however do not resemble modern Dragon Dance in their descriptions, and depictions of dragon dance in Han Dynasty stone relief engravings suggest that the props used may also be cumbersome, unlike modern Dragon Dance where light-weight dragons are manipulated by performers. 
The dragon acts of the Han Dynasty were also mentioned in the Tang and Song Dynasty. Figures similar to the dragon lantern (龍燈) used during Lantern Festival were described in the Song Dynasty work "Dreams of Splendor of the Eastern Capital", where figures of dragon mounted for display were constructed out of grass and cloth and inside which numerous candle lights may be placed. Such dragon lanterns may also be carried and paraded by performers in the street during the Lantern festival at nighttime. A wide variety of dragon dances have developed in various regions in China, for example, the Fenghua Cloth Dragon (奉化布龙) from Zhejiang was made with bamboo frame and covered with cloth, and is said to have been developed in the 1200s. A form of dragon dance from Tongliang County (铜梁龙舞), which originated as snake totem worship, began during the Ming Dynasty and became popular in the Qing Dynasty. In the modern era, the government of People's Republic of China adapted and promoted various traditional folk dances, which contributed to the popularity of the current form of the dragon dance now found widely in China as well as Chinese communities around the world.
Dragoon is the last of the Dragon Knights, an elite group of spear-carrying warriors who attack by jumping high in the air and coming down on their opponents. Dragoon uses this technique as a travel method, but is unable to perform these jumps without having a target. His usual target is Black Mage, although he does not harbour any ill will against the Light Warriors. In fact, he is extremely polite towards them, remaining oblivious to the considerable pain his travel method causes. Dragoon has encountered the team several times, mostly in passing. Like the Light Warriors, he was looking for the Air Orb that the Other Warriors seemingly stole from him and which he means to use to rebuild the Order of Dragon Knights. He had since been seen with White Mage and Sarda's younger self, before being teleported to the Moon by Sarda. Sometime in the following years, he joined Red Mage's support group for lone survivors of secret societies (Sects Buddies) after returning from the moon.
Croatian dance traditionally refers to a series of folk-dances, the most common being the kolo ("circle [dance]"). Croatian dance varies by region, and can be found throughout the various regions of Austria, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Serbia, Kosovo, Hungary, and Romania. The traditional kolo is a circle dance, where dancers follow each other around the circle, is relatively simple in form and widespread throughout other Slavic countries. Due to emigration, Croatian folk dance groups are prevalent throughout the diaspora, most notably the United States, Canada, Australia, and Germany.
Dragon Quest is the first role-playing video game (RPG) in the "Dragon Quest" media franchise. It was developed by Chunsoft for the Family Computer (or Famicom for short) and published by Enix in Japan in 1986 as "Dragon Quest" and by Nintendo in 1989 in North America for the Nintendo Entertainment System (or NES) as Dragon Warrior. "Dragon Quest" has been ported and remade for several video game platforms, including the MSX, PC-9801, Super Famicom, Game Boy Color, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation 4 and mobile phones. In play, players control a hero character who is charged with saving the Kingdom of Alefgard and rescuing its princess from the evil Dragonlord. "Dragon Warrior"s story became the second part in a trilogy. Several more anime and manga series, which revolved around this overarching plot were created.
Dragon Booster is a Canadian animated series first broadcast in 2004. It follows the story of young Artha Penn, a stable boy who rides Beaucephalis (or "Beau" for short), the dragon of legend. He becomes a Dragon Booster, a hero to protect the world from the impending Dragon-Human war and unite humans and dragons for all time.
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, known in the PAL regions as Dragon Quest: The Journey of the Cursed King, is a role-playing video game developed by Level-5 and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 2. It was first released in Japan in 2004, and was later released in North America in 2005 and PAL regions in 2006, making it the first main series installment released in the PAL region. It is the eighth installment of the popular "Dragon Quest" series and it is the first English version of a "Dragon Quest" game to drop the "Dragon Warrior" title. A version of the game for Android and iOS was released in Japan in December 2013, and worldwide in May 2014.
Samba de roda ("Samba of roda") is a traditional Afro-Brazilian dance performed originally as informal fun after a Candomblé ceremony, using the same percussion instruments used during the religious ceremony. The typical drum is the atabaque; drummers improvise variations and elaborations on common patterns, accompanied typically by singing and clapping as well as dancing.
Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and East Asian culture at large. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms such as turtles and fish, but are most commonly depicted as snake-like with four legs. They traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, typhoons, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it in East Asian culture. During the days of Imperial China, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength. They are also the symbol and representative for the Son of Heaven, the Mandate of Heaven, the Celestial Empire and the Chinese Tributary System during the history of China.
"Dragon Quest VIII" was released in PAL regions in April 2006 under the title "Dragon Quest: The Journey of the Cursed King", dropping the Roman numeral. This marked the first time a main game in the series had been released in the PAL region. In an interview with Horii in London, he mentioned that the 2003 merger between Squaresoft and Enix (creating Square Enix) allowed the company to release more games in more localities, with producer Ryutaro Ichimura adding that "European tastes have changed because of the influence of anime and cartoons, so Europeans are more willing to receive this type of artwork."
In Pentos, a city-state of Essos, a continent to the east of Westeros, Viserys Targaryen, son of the king overthrown by Robert Baratheon, betroths his sister Daenerys to Khal Drogo, a warlord of the nomadic Dothraki, in exchange for the use of Drogo's army to reclaim the throne of Westeros. Illyrio, a wealthy merchant who has been supporting the penniless Targaryens and brokered the marriage, gives Daenerys three petrified dragon eggs as a wedding gift. Jorah Mormont (son of Jeor Mormont), a knight exiled from Westeros, joins Viserys as an adviser. Daenerys is a 13 year old, dominated by her older brother, and is surprised when Jorah describes Viserys as a future tyrant. Jorah further tells Daenerys that the "common folk" do not long for a Targaryen restoration as believed by Viserys and are indifferent to the "game of thrones" played by the elite, just wanting to live in peace.
The madhom is flanked by temples of Rama and Siva and the street has an array of Agraharas (where the twelve Brahmin families migrated along with Ezhuthachan live). At the madhom, some of the instruments used by Ezhuthachan are still preserved. A Sri Chakra and a few idols worshipped by him, the stylus, the wooden slippers, and a few old manuscripts are exhibited for visitors. Ezhuthachan's samadhi is also situated there.
The original "Dragon Slayer", released for the PC-88 in 1984, is considered to be the first action-RPG. In contrast to earlier turn-based roguelikes, "Dragon Slayer" was a dungeon crawl RPG that was entirely real-time with action-oriented combat. "Dragon Slayer" also featured an in-game map to help with the dungeon-crawling, required item management due to the inventory being limited to one item at a time, and introduced the use of item-based puzzles which later influenced "The Legend of Zelda". "Dragon Slayer" was a major success in Japan, where its overhead action-RPG formula was used in many later games. The game's MSX port was also one of the first titles to be published by Square.
Some adventure games have been presented as interactive movies; these are games where most of the graphics are either fully pre-rendered or use full motion video from live actors on a set, stored on a media that allows fast random access such as laserdisc or CD-ROM. The arcade versions of "Dragon's Lair" and "Space Ace" are canonical examples of such works. The game's software would present a scene, and players would have to input the correct moves with a joystick and button to continue on, the choices leading to the game playing a new scene from the media. The video may be augmented by additional computer graphics; "Under a Killing Moon" used a combination of full motion video and 3D graphics. Because these games are limited by what has been pre-rendered or recorded, there is a lack of player interactivity in these titles, with wrong choices or decisions leading quickly to an ending scene.
Yuri becomes the king of a nation where all of the citizens are demons, but they appear indistinguishable from humans. Their only distinguishing traits are their long lives and the ability to use magic. The people of the Demon Tribe are able to make a pact with an element after which they can then use magic of that element. Covenant Castle is in the capital of the Demon Kingdom. It is the residence of the demon king. The culture of The Great Demon Kingdom is very different from the Japanese culture Yuri is accustomed to, and the differences make for amusing mishaps with long ranging consequences, such as an accidental proposal of marriage.
The Pesaro Manuscript, from the mid-16th century, an important document in the history of the Lira, records a Passemezzo Moderno, (contemporary dance measure) written in lira tablature. Discovered in the town of Pesaro, on the Adriatic coast, this strange, mutilated script is the sole surviving example of written music for the Lira. It suggests at least the possibility that the instrument was being used as a dance instrument by this time. Its harmonic character, and useful range of home keys would have been ideally suited to render the fashionable dance music of the day.
Some bilingual Chinese dictionaries translate "teng" as "wingless dragon", but this apparent ghost meaning is not found in monolingual Chinese sources. For instance, the Wiktionary and the Unihan Database translation equivalent for "teng" 螣 is "mythological wingless dragon of" . This dangling "of" appears to be copied from Robert Henry Mathews (1931:894) "Mathews' Chinese-English Dictionary" "A wingless dragon of the clouds", which adapted Herbert Giles's (1892:1352) dictionary "A wingless dragon which inhabits the clouds and is regarded as a creature of evil omen." While dragons are depicted as both winged and wingless (e.g., the lindworm "a bipedal wingless dragon"), Chinese dictionaries note "teng" "flying serpents" are "wuzu" 無足 "footless; legless" (see the "Xunzi" below) not "wingless".
The end of the final episode of the third season alluded to a planned name change to "Dragon Booster: Academy" for the next season to reflect the planned change in setting; however, in an interview with Matt Hill (the voice of Artha Penn) on June 10, 2006 at the Otakuthon convention held in Concordia University (Montreal), it was made apparent that "Dragon Booster" failed to pull together a large enough fan base and production has permanently ceased on the series. He stated, "We did not get the following 13 episodes." When asked why the series lost its bid for more episodes, Hill responded, "They were not selling enough action figures".
Square Enix released a PlayStation 2 enhanced remake of "Dragon Quest V" on March 25, 2004, with first day sales of 722,000. As of April 2004, the game has sold over 1.5 million copies making it the top selling "Dragon Quest" remake game of all-time, and is available in Japan as an Ultimate Hits title. The remake was developed by former "Dragon Quest VII" art directors, Artepiazza. It features 3D graphics that are similar to "Dragon Quest VII", but it utilizes the extra PlayStation 2 graphical capabilities. The Hero and his companions have to fight more monsters in the PlayStation 2 remake than they did in the Super Famicom original, but the character limit on the party has been increased from three to four. Also, there were only 40 monsters available to the player's party in the Super Famicom version of "Dragon Quest V" due to ROM limitations. The PlayStation 2 remake, however, does not suffer from this restriction. The music is performed by the NHK Symphony.
In February 2015, a low-budget TV adaptation titled "Winter Dragon", based on the prologue to "The Eye of the World", was aired on FXX. It starred Max Ryan as Lews Therin Thelamon and Billy Zane as Ishamael. It aired with no announcements or publicity. Harriet McDougal initially stated she was unaware of the show ahead of time, and that the film rights to "The Wheel of Time" were set to revert to the Bandersnatch Group, her company, a few days later on February 11, 2015. Her comments triggered a lawsuit with Red Eagle, which was ultimately dismissed during settlement talks that July. In an interview with io9 Rick Selvage, CEO of Red Eagle Entertainment stated "it was more of an [issue of] getting it on the air." A spokesman for FXX stated that the channel was paid to air the show, but Selvage hinted that it was indeed produced with a future series in mind. "We think there's huge demand for the television series internationally, and we're looking forward to producing it and getting it out in the marketplace."
Thailand receives reliability, creditability and confidence by the OCA member countries, once again, to host the 1st Asian Indoor Games in 2005. For the Games mascot, the Organizing Committee agrees to use “Elephant” as it foresees that it is a national treasure of Thailand. Besides being a mighty animal, it is an intelligent animal capable of using it in various occasions even during our natural disaster.
Terry O’Donovan, from Limerick and Daphna Attias, from Tel Aviv formed Dante or Die after they both attended The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama's MA in "Advanced Theatre Practice". The name 'Dante or Die' comes from the site where Terry & Daphna first made a site-specific performance together in the skate park of Kennington Park alongside Clare Parke-Davies and Anthea Neagle. The graffiti that has the words Dante or Die is still there today.
As well as the Piao-se performances, Yakou people also perform dragon dances, lion dances and Kylin dances in the Piao-se parade.
The dragon used in Yakou is the wooden dragon. At a length of 50 meters, the wooden dragon is made of many boards. Despite its length and material, the dragon can move flexibly. For the Kylin dance, Yakou people used a Kylin which is two or three times bigger than people in other area of Guangdong use, and the performance is lively and natural.
"Passing through the dragon" means children squeeze through the long section of the dragon. They dance and pray that they will grow up healthy.
The dragons hold a very significant position in the Chinese tradition. They are supposed to bring good luck as they possess power, dignity and wisdom. Thus, the Chinese love to perform the Dragon dance during the Chinese New Year. Tourists from around the globe come to china to see this dance style
A huge dragon is made out of wood, with poles places at equal intervals to hold the dragon and it was decorated with beautiful lanterns and flowers. Chinese believe that longer the dragon, more good luck it is supposed to bring to the people. The participants can themselves carry the dragon along with the villagers and perform the dragon dance.
The dragon dance is performed by a skilled team whose job is to bring the motionless body to life. The correct combination and proper timing of the different parts of the dragon are very important to make a successful dance. Any mistakes made by even some of the performers would spoil the whole performance. To be very successful in the dance, the head of the Dragon must be able to coordinate with the body movement to match the timing of the drum. For larger ceremonial and parade style dragons, the head can weigh as much as 12 katis (14.4 kg, almost 32 lb). The dragon tail also has an important role to play as it will have to keep in time with head movements. The fifth section is considered to be the middle portion and the performers must be very alert as the body movements change from time to time. The dragon is often led by a person holding a spherical object representing a pearl.
The patterns of the dragon dance are choreographed according to the skills and experiences acquired by the performers. Some of the patterns of the dragon dance are "Cloud Cave", "Whirlpool", T'ai chi pattern, "threading the money", "looking for pearl", and "dragon encircling the pillar". The movement "dragon chasing the pearl" shows that the dragon is continually in the pursuit of wisdom.
The dragon dance is often performed during Chinese New Year. Chinese dragons are a symbol of China's culture, and they are believed to bring good luck to people, therefore the longer the dragon in the dance, the more luck it will bring to the community. The dragons are believed to possess qualities that include great power, dignity, fertility, wisdom and auspiciousness. The appearance of a dragon is both fearsome and bold but it has a benevolent disposition, and it was an emblem to represent imperial authority. The movements in a performance traditionally symbolize historical roles of dragons demonstrating power and dignity.