Rumor has it the traditional Chinese dance group, ShanWu, is performing for the last time.
“That is what is going around,” Shanwu coordinator Syd Tan said.
But they are hoping somebody will step up and change that after they graduate.
The group was formed four years ago to make traditional Chinese dance more accessible at Cal Poly. Along the way, it created a space to celebrate Chinese culture through dance.
However, now it’s in danger of disappearing, and they’re determined to go out with a bang.
Tan is the coordinator for ShanWu, a Cal Poly dance group that blends classical Chinese dance with contemporary elements and traditional folk dance. The group’s name originates from a Chinese proverb, “neng ge shan wu,” meaning multi-talented and versatile, according to Tan.
Tan is the only dancer in the group with professional training who stepped up to take on a coordinator role. As it stands, no one on the team will be filling those shoes.
“There is a level of training involved,” Tan said. “There is a level of cultural appreciation I think that’s involved. So you don’t want to be getting off on the wrong foot.”
ShanWu’s style differs from other dance groups due to its emphasis on storytelling. Dancers aim to communicate the essence of Chinese culture through visual storytelling while bringing diversity to the dance communities on campus.
“When you’re trying to emulate the dance to the audience, you’re also trying to tell a story at the same time,” Tan said.
Tan wants ShanWu to live on. But her leadership won’t be easy to fill.
The group first started with five close friends and quickly grew into a team of 18, debuting in 2021 at Illuminate. Since then, they’ve performed quarterly— at Culturefest every fall, Illuminate in winter and Lantern Festival in spring.
Since Tan is studying abroad next quarter, the group will not be performing at LanternFest.
“It’s kind of disheartening sometimes too because now I hear people being like, ‘wait, I was gonna do it next quarter’ and I’m like ‘why didn’t you do it this quarter,’” Tan said.
With this year’s Illuminate potentially being Shanwu’s last performance at Cal Poly, some students knew they had to get involved.
“When I heard it was like the last quarter, I was like I have to do it now,” said Claire Bak, a business junior.
To Bak, dance is more than just a form of exercise.
“I made so many friends in my freshman year in these dance clubs and so it’s like my way of seeing them and catching up with people that I don’t normally hang out with, which is really nice,” Bak said.
Other dancers expressed how ShanWu provided them with a space to connect with Chinese culture.
“ShanWu was sort of a return to my roots, but also like trying something very new in terms of style,” said Jacob Kwong, graphic communications senior.
Kwong joined ShanWu for Illuminate last year and has helped plan everything from announcements to clearing studio space for this year’s performances.
Kwong said that growing up they focused on other forms of dance, like ballet, rather than exploring traditional Chinese dance styles.
A new direction
This winter’s dance showcase, ShanWu, is bringing a change of pace to their performances.
“Last year we went with a more peaceful, lighthearted style of pieces, and this year we’re hoping to go with a little bit of a different direction,” Tan said. “Maybe a little bit mysterious. Maybe a little bit dark.”
Over the summer, Tan and Kwong decided that they wanted to implement themes of horror into their performance at Illuminate.
“ShanWu is the most theatrical,” Kwong said, compared to other groups they perform with. “I was a theater kid, so it really brings me back to that storytelling, and that more narrative aspect of art and dance in general.”
A lot of Chinese dance is based on folklore, and this year, ShanWu is “tapping into the darker side of that,” according to Kwong.
ShanWu dancers said they have been pushing themselves outside of their comfort zone as Illuminate approaches. The audience can expect pink masks with gold trimmings covering dancers’ faces, along with long fans flowing with their movements.
For some in the group like Bak, a new dancer with ShanWu, incorporating elements of long fan is unfamiliar.
“I have never done something so difficult, like, it’s completely different than anything I’ve ever done before,” Bak said. “So learning the mechanics of it has been really difficult but also been really interesting and cool to learn.”
Stereotyping Chinese dance: “Come watch us with an open mind. That’s all I ask”
When most people think of traditional Chinese dance, it’s the ads plastered over street signs and billboards for the touring group Shen Yun. But that’s not what ShanWu is about.
Tan said Shen Yun has “exotified” Chinese dance.
“I think that it sort of perpetuates this idea that Chinese dance isn’t accessible,” Kwong said. “I think Shen Yun kind of perpetuates this idea that to perform and to do this high-value art, you have to be the peak of flexibility, and like the peak of performance and everything has to be perfect.”
The group strives to dismantle this perception.
“That was the whole point of wanting to open ShanWu to more people was so that more people could learn about the style of dance and appreciate it for what it is,” Tan said.
Tan has played a pivotal role in creating a space for this dance style at Cal Poly, Kwong expressed.
“It’s really a blessing that Syd [Tan] came in and has like all this knowledge about Chinese dance and is willing to sort of teach us and show us all these different styles and these different techniques,” Kwong said.
The groups hoped to have a lasting impact with this performance potentially being the last.
“I would really enjoy it if people would come to watch our performance with open eyes, open minds, without thinking about those stereotypes and thinking about what Chinese dance necessarily has to be because there’s so much to Chinese dance,” Tan said.
Tickets for Illuminate went on sale Feb. 9 at noon. Even though the evening show is sold out, shows for the 11 a.m. performance are still available. With this potentially being ShanWu’s last performance, the group encourages everyone to come watch.
“Come watch us with an open mind,” Tan said. “That’s all I ask.”
It might be the last chance.
