GALLERY: Lunar New Year Lion Dance Parade through Chinatown

A lion dance performer gives a woman a tangerine in front of Great Taste Bakery & Restaurant. The tangerine is picked up by the performer as part of an offering set outside restaurants, and is meant to be thrown or given to people around as a way of spreading fortune. ANH NGUYEN/DFP STAFF

Lion dance performers after throwing firecrackers in front of Tea-Do. Firecrackers are thrown once performers finish their dance as a symbol of scaring away evil spirits. ANH NGUYEN/DFP STAFF

A store owner and her employees welcome the lion dance team during the Lunar New Year parade Feb. 13 with a head of lettuce for good luck with her business in the upcoming year. MOHAN GE/DFP STAFF

Two teen lion dance performers perform in the Lunar New Year parade in Chinatown Feb. 13. MOHAN GE/DFP STAFF

Two performers holding the head of a lion costume. Lion costumes traditionally consist of at least two people, one at the front holding the head, and one at the back moving the tail. ANH NGUYEN/DFP STAFF

Hung Gar Kung Fu and Lion Dance Academy’s lion dance band plays gongs and drums during the lion dance performance in the Parade through Chinatown Feb. 13. MOHAN GE/DFP STAFF

Hung Gar Kung Fu and Lion Dance Academy’s lion dance team moves to another store for their next performance. MOHAN GE/DFP STAFF

Two female lion dance performers hold up a costume at the Lunar New Year Parade Feb. 13 in Chinatown. ANH NGUYEN/DFP STAFF

The lion dance performance team gathers on Harrison Avenue and dances among the crowd during the parade Feb. 13. MOHAN GE/DFP STAFF