Jinfan Art Troupe: Studying performing art from a young age

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A cooling twist on tea! When is the best time to start studying the performing arts? Many would say from childhood. And this is the mission of the Jinfan Dance Troupe from Beijing School No. 9. Over the past 3 decades, the art troupe has been dedicated to creating a better environment for students who want to pick up performing arts from an early age.

This is an opera show by the Jinfan Dance Troupe, featuring its young performers ranging from age 12 to 18. Since 2008, more and more students have joined the dance troupe. Among them is sixth grader Wang Xuhui, who has been studying Peking opera for six years.

WANG XUHUI MEMBER OF THE JINFAN DANCE TROUPE "At the beginning, I was fascinated by the delicate make up of the Peking opera performers, their attire and colorful faces. This is also the reason I wanted to study Peking opera. And when I stepped into this art form, I found it is more than beautiful attire and voices. Peking opera has a lot of characters and learning it is not an easy job."

Students in the dance troupe not only learn about stage performance, but also study the culture behind operas and dramas.

WANG JUN BEIJING MUNICIPAL COMMISSION OF EDUCATION "We hope more and more students can join the Jinfan Dance Troupe and learn and study China's traditional arts, and I think this will be a good way to carry forward traditional Chinese culture."

During the show, a dance performance was presented with a young member from the Jinfan Dance Troupe leading the piece. Her name is Zhao Xiaoquan, who has just entered high school. She began to study dance at 3 years old.

ZHAO XIAOQUAN MEMBER OF THE JINFAN DANCE TROUPE "The dance we are presenting today is based on a poem and was choreographed by one of my teachers. The dance is entitled 'Bamboo Song', and my teacher hopes we can learn from bamboo's quality of perseverance."

LIU JIA, TEACHER THE EXPERIMENTAL HIGH SCHOOL ATTACHED TO BEIJING NORMAL UNIVERSITY "I hope my students can benefit more from studying these art forms. It is not just about performing, it is more about what they can learn from it and cultivate their interest and personality."

Founded in 1987, the Jinfan Dance Troupe began with training 25 middle and high school dance students. Now it has more than 10-thousand members. And many of its students have become teachers of the troupe.

XU LIANG MEMBER OF THE JINFAN DANCE TROUPE "I became a member of the Jinfan Dance Troupe in 1991 and eight years later, I went to university and then went to study abroad. After I graduated, I chose to come back and teach here. My experience here promotes me to give, to devote what I have learned."

The troupe's dance aesthetic focuses on traditional Chinese dance and produces high quality choreography, costuming, and performances. Its repertoire includes diverse traditional Chinese dance genres such as Han Drum, Mongolian and Tibetan, as well as contemporary dance forms.