Lion Dancing is an art. In order to excel in it, one must have a firm foundation in Kung Fu. This includes strong legs and stances, a lot of upper body strength, flexibility, coordination, balance and stamina. But this is only the beginning. A good lion dancer must research, interpret, imitate and understand the nature of an animal. Without this feeling, the lion dancer would be like any ordinary person swinging a paper-mache object to and fro.

When performing a Lion Dance, the following must be considered. Lions are full of curiosity but easily startled. Upon confronting anything strange, the lion is cautious, wondering and shows skepticism. The dancers must also be able to make the lion appear happy, angry, sad and overjoyed.

Aside from these emotions, animal behavior must also be incorporated into the lion dance. This includes the animal grooming itself, stroking its fur, scratching, eating, rolling over, sprawling when tired, falling asleep, and waking up. A lion dancer who can masterfully imitate these actions can make the Chinese Lion behave like a real animal.