"Varieties of Chinese Dance"

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

This article stands out to me as I first saw the picture that comes along with it, and it reminds me of cultural shows that I've been to. I have heard of the Chinese Cultural Dance Club, but never really read how extensive its function is. I did not know that the members put on shows other than during ACA's culture show. When I attended ACA's first meeting, I got a glimpse of the a cultural dance, as the club cabinet members were introducing the many aspects of the clubs. I enjoyed the short portion of a dance, but did not expect that there is a separate club devoted to cutural dance. This article mentions that during the Lotus Steps performance, there was a mix of modern dancing with cultural dance rhythms. Despite that not being as well accepted as the pure cultural dances, I still find it meaningful, since it emphasizes the mix of cultures (Chinese-American) as well as of time frames (ancient and currently). The article reminds me that there are many opportunities to explore and get involved in cultural organizations.

[Anonymous]

I am interested your "varieties of dance" posting for several reasons. I am trying to make contact with a person or group who would be interested in doing a persentation on Chinese Dance to my Drama/Play Production classes at University High School in West Los Angeles. While I am not a dancer, I am interested in performance art from diverse cultures as a means of gaining insight into the history and sensibilities of the culture. I would like to begin a forum heading like "cultural art and performance" or something like that. I am new to East Asian studies but I am very interested in diverse styles of Theater, Art, Music, and Dance and what they reveal about culture.

Thanks for your posting. I plan to check out the Chineese Cultural Dance Club!

[clay dube]

Jack,

There's a story on the Asia Institute website by oneo of the UCLA dance group's staff that will give you a broad overview of their aims and activities:

http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/article.asp?parentid=23757

Asia Pacific Arts carried a review of the latest Chinese Cultural Dance Club performance. It includes a unnarrated video of a rehearsal:

http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=24097

http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=24636
An APA review of an earlier peformance:

http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=10925

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info on the CCDC at UCLA. I have contacted them, visited their website, and shared their newsletter with my students. We have been invited to their Spring performance and we are currently in discussion about their sending a couple of instructors to University High to provide cultural expertise for our "Flower Drum" performance. I was very impressed by their outreach committment with the "big sis/little sis" program and their classes for young people. I am hoping to have them come to Uni and perform for the World History, Humanitas, and Performing Arts students. I'm sure this would be a great step in encouraging our Asian students to share their performance talents and become more actively involved in our performance programs in dance, theater, and music. Thanks for the lead.

[Anonymous]

If you and your students are interested in Chinese culture in all its diversity mark your calendars for May 27th 2006! This is the date of the Lotus Steps 2006 performance by the Chinese Cultural Dance Club of UCLA http://www.ccdcbruins.com. I first became aquainted with this group though a recommendation of professsor Clayton Dube from the Asia Institute. They came to University High to work with students during our production of David Henry Hwang's "Flower Drum Song". We then invited them to bring several dances to the school that would show the diversity of Chinese culture through Dance. On Friday March 3rd we gathered 300 students from various curricular disciplines (Dance, Wolrd History, Fine and Performing Arts, ESL, and World Literature) to see the 7 dances they had prepared. We were stunned and captivated as the group, in ornate regional costume, presented a program of narration and dance that truly opened our eyes to the tremendous variety of movement styles that represent the diverse regions and cultural practices China's many subcultures. There were the movement styles one would expect "Evening Bell" deriving from T'ai Chi Chuan and martial arts. But there were also many surprising offerings like "Children of the Prairie" depicting women on horseback flying across China's open range, or "Echoes of Hualien" that had a Native American feel in both movement and costume. The beautiful "Meditation" used fans but they were unlike any I had ever seen with ornate feather coverings and flowing silk extensions. Each number was preceded by a brief explanation of movement and costume origin and the cultural elements that were showcased in the selection.
Many of these same dances will be a part of the Lotus Steps 2006 program in May and while I am sure that you can find this same information in some text book or web site, nothing can leave the lasting impression of these talented performers sharing the richness of Chinese culture through costume and dance. Don't misss it!

[Author]

Posts