Longyan Cai Cha Lantern is regarded as an auspicious song and dance by the masses, and like the traditional Dragon Lantern and Lion Dance in China, it is mostly performed in the Lunar New Year, during the Lantern Festival, and during the temple fairs, and street treading in the Tang Hui. The performance is led by the prestigious "big head family" of the clan to set up a "light house" to find lively boys (men dressed as women), who are taken care of by several "small head families", and are given red envelopes, costumes and shoes and socks with dragons and phoenixes on them, and are then awarded the title of "Dragon Lantern Dance". They are given red packets, costumes and shoes and socks with dragon and phoenix on them, and then they are taught to perform and compete in village competitions.
Longyan "tea-picking lanterns," also known as "tea-picking butterflies," were popular in Longyan's Chimei Mountain during the Ming and Qing dynasties (today's Suquanmeishan Village in Longyan's Xinluo District). The ancient program of "Picking Tea Lights" was imported from Guangdong, about two hundred and sixty years ago.
The basic dance steps of the Cai Cha Lantern are unique in style, with a light, delicate and upright body. The dance of Cai Cha Lantern is mainly in interspersed formations, and there are dozens of styles in general. The music of the tea-picking lamps adopts the classical and local folk tunes which are strayed from the court to the folk, and the music tunes are fast-paced, melodious and matched with the opera and folk stories as the content of the lyrics, which are danced and sung at the same time. The team consists of the Tea Gong (wearing Han clothes, tied in the waist. Dealing with a large fan), tea lady (combing silver treasure head, wearing blue wide brocade side lapel coat and skirt, waist tie silk belt, tie flower apron, stick fan) and tea aunt: 8 people (forehead PeiFengZhuCuiPing, head combed swallow-tailed bun, wearing red color lotus dress, thin waist tie silk belt, one hand holding folding fan, a hand-held flower basket lamp), WuXiaoSheng, male clowns (one hand holding a black folding fan, a hand-held lanterns or horse lanterns), they are dancing while acting, interspersed with doi moi or singing. The dance of "Picking Tea Lights" has been popular in the north and south of the Yangtze River, and is one of the most representative folk dances in Fujian.