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Last year's junior female division gold winner Angelia Wang, in New Tang Dynasty Television's third International Classical Chinese Dance Competition. (Edward Dai/ The Epoch Times)
New Tang Dynasty Television announced its fourth International Classical Chinese Dance Competition, which will take place at Performing Arts Center of Purchase College, SUNY in Westchester, New York from September 9–12.
As the only competition for classical Chinese dance on an international scale, the event has been a beacon for Chinese dance professionals from all over the world over the past three years. The aim of the competition is to promote authentic and traditional Chinese classic dance, as well as to provide an opportunity for qualified Chinese dancers from different parts of the world to share and improve during the competition.
At a press conference, Yungchia Chen and Michelle Ren, both spokespersons of the Judging Committee, revealed the requirements and expectations for this year’s contestants.
A Closer Look At Classic Chinese Dance
China’s 5,000 years of civilization gives endless inspiration for classical Chinese dance.
When ancient Chinese cultures of different periods and dynasties formed the characteristics of their movements and expressions, it developed into a type of “bearing.” At the same times, both oral and written teachings of the dance form were passed down to dancers of different times, and that lead to the systematic way of instructing Chinese classic dance.
With both forms of transmissions, Chinese classic dance owns unique characteristics that allow a dancer to express the inner feelings of a character in great depth.The unique flavor of Chinese dance expression forms the basis for the art, and is the fundamental criterion for judging the competition.
Systematic training in classic Chinese dance also includes tumbling techniques, flips, turns, leaps and spins. According to both judges, techniques are also important, but they can only serve to assist a dancer to define a character, while the bearing of movements and expressions are the fundamental elements.
Both judges pointed out that much of the essence of classical Chinese dance was lost due to the Cultural Revolution led by the Communist Party in China. This was a period of time in which anything deemed “old,” was destroyed, including masterpieces of art, literature, and ancient temples. As a result, it became common to combine movements from folk, ethnic and modern dances while in fact, such combinations do not reflect the most authentic Chinese classic dance, and fail to communicate the deep inner-meaning and expressions of this art form. This watered down Chinese dance is often used in China to define figures of animals or to promote and celebrate the Communist Party. Actually, Chinese people call their country the land of the divine. Throughout history, dance was used to express gratitude to heaven, as well as virtues such as loyalty and piousness.
In order to excel at classic Chinese dance, a dancer is recommended to have a solid grasp of the Chinese history, as well as refinement in manners. Both of the elements can help a dancer to improve his or her artistic performance on stage.
“Let’s say that you are going to portray a heavenly maiden. You have to think about how a heavenly maiden’s state of mind is like, what her movements are like,” explained Michelle Ren.
NTDTV’s Classic Chinese Dance Competition
As part of New Tang Dynasty Television’s series of international culture and arts events, the International Classic Chinese Dance Competition is held annually. The main purpose of the competition is to revive classic Chinese dance, and promote the purest and most authentic of the dance form.
In the past three years, renowned historical figures such as the heroic Mulan, the vivacious Monkey King as well as heavenly nymphs and maidens were popular picks for contestants Their performances gained appreciation from the audience of both Chinese and western backgrounds.
“I always feel very happy to see rising stars at the competition. We can clearly see that each year’s contestants are at a greater level than those of the previous year,” said Yungchia Chen.
Both judges were gold medalists of the NTDTV’s First International Classic Chinese Dance Competition. Michelle Ren remarked that the competition is not only a great opportunity for westerners to know about classic Chinese dance, it can also serve as a platform for dancers from all over the world to share and learn from others. “I benefited tremendously from participating in the competition, as it allowed me to take a deeper look at the vast scope of the dance system,” said Ren.
When it comes to expectations for this year’s contestants, the judges hope that each contestant can take time to build up the story line and read about the characters they are going to perform, as the emphasis of the competition is on artistic performance, rather than simply techniques. According to the judges, techniques should serve to build the characters and convey their inner feelings. “I hope that the contestants will take time to read about the divine culture, the traditional culture of China,” said Michelle Ren.
The competition is open for professional Chinese dancers from age 13 to 40. Contestants will be divided into four divisions according to their gender and age. Each contestant is required to perform one piece of self-composed dance routine and another short piece containing a set of dance techniques, such as turns, leaps, flips, and tumbling techniques. The competition is divided into three rounds, and the gold medalist of each division will receive a reward of $10,000 dollars. The Judging Committee announced that Shen Yun Performing Arts will deliver a special performance after the awards ceremony.
For registration and information of the event, please go to
Internet: http://dance.ntdtv.com
Email: dance@globalcompetitions.org
Hotlines: 1-646-736-2988
