Expats part of Pudong's square dancing competition
Provided by Pudong Culture and Art Guide Center. Edited by Li Qian.
A guangchangwu competition has raised its curtain in Shanghai's Pudong New Area.
Guangchangwu, literally square dancing, is a Chinese-style line dance and a popular pastime among Chinese people, especially the middle-aged and the elderly.
At the opening ceremony held over the weekend, 50 guangchangwu instructors, including professional and amateur dancers, local residents and workers, were unveiled. Notably, two were expats.
One of them, Oksana Krupikova from Russia, revealed that it was guangchangwu that helped her mother integrate into the local community.
There are two expats among the 50 guangchangwu instructors for Pudong's guangchangwu competition.
Oksana has been living in Pudong for 14 years and now runs three stores of the BodyLab Dance Center.
"Pudong is where my family settled down and my business started. It's a very international place with rich cultural life," she said.
When her mother came to Pudong several years ago, she found it hard to make friends because of the language barrier. One day, she came across a guangchangwu team and was invited to join them.
"At that moment, no one cared where she was from or whether she could dance or not. She was just warmly welcomed," Oksana recalled. "So, I think it's really a good lifestyle of good faith."
With the other 49 guangchangwu instructors, Oksana will go to neighborhoods to help locals to improve their guangchangwu and encourage them to take part in the competition.
The finals will be held in November, and a performance by outstanding teams will be staged around New Year's Day of 2024.
The 50 guangchangwu instructors dance with the iconic Oriental Pearl Tower in the background.
