Have you ever watched the loong dance in Jianchang Town, Benxi City? With the sound of gongs and drums filling the air, a nearly 40-meter-long bamboo loong is waved up and down by young and strong farmers to chase a moving loong ball. All are too much for the eyes to feast on at a time. Following the beats of gongs and drums, and with the loong ball guiding the way, the loong dancers also wield the giant loong to strike different poses, such as “loong playing in water”, “loong folding its back”, “golden loong coiling around a jade pillar”, “loong swinging its tail”, “loong turning over”, “loong bending in its claws”, and “loong winding its tail”. The robust loong hovers and stretches, which is spectacular.

As a cultural symbol of the century-old town, the Jianchang loong dance has a long history. It originated from the Daoguang Period of the Qing Dynasty, and flourished during the Guangxu Period of the same dynasty. Undergoing ups and downs, it has been passed down from generation to generation, until this day.