Getting inspired in Shanghai
My favorite classes right now to teach is of course the contemporary for teens and contemporary jazz for 7-10y. But for example the small ballerinas or hip hop boys are also enjoyable and because all days are so different, I never get bored at work. They challenge me in different ways and also makes me laugh out loud because of quirky things they say.
“Do you have a prince?” - Luna 4y. She thinks I am a princess.
“Teacher Rebecca, you smell so good” repeated 4 times during a 45min class. -Lillian 3y. I had tiger balm on my back..
I had one girl last week continuing dancing although tears were streaming down her face. She only answered in Chinese when I asked what was wrong so I got an assistant to translate. “It’s getting darker outside every evening”. Well… yes but the sun always comes back!
Last weekend I visited the contemporary art museum MOCA. It was an interesting exhibition about transmedia, which you can read about below, and how different kinds of combined arts can affect us because of more and different layers of information we usually see. Music, videos, installations, sculptures, photos, drawings and other element was put together or separated in this 3 floor exhibition. 
I enjoyed the angry Chinese screaming in slow-motion (without sound) but my favorite was a TV screen showing a traditional Chinese dance performance but the music playing came from another source around you. It was playing traditional beautiful Chinese music with song but every now and then it switched to Debussy and I it somehow fitted nicely to the piece as well. This western style soft piano music in combination to the Chinese performance was really beautiful and interesting!
It got me inspired to try the opposite way around. Start on modern choreography (western dance style) to typical western music, film it, and then add traditional Chinese music and see if how combination turns out.. It is a fine balance working with fusions to not making it to confusing or even nauseating but to find a balance that makes you fascinated.
Many parents do not have permission from their child to go to this event but they think it is the only way to uphold a traditional dating style for their children in modern China. China's long idealized tradition of continuing their family lineage is very important within Chinese culture. As the children of the One Child Policy start to become of typical marriage age, the so-called marriage "market" of China has wavered in stability, particularly for males in China. The University of Kent predicts that by the year 2020, 24 million men will be unmarried and unable to find a wife.
I have spoken to some parent about the one child policy and some go abroad to give birth to sibling, So they can have more kids but they do need to pay an amount to the government which makes if financially difficult for a lot of families.
What I like about the small parks in shanghai is that there is always some performance or rehearsals there to be witnessed. Maybe it is hard to find location for practice or they just like to share process in public.. Anyone knows what this instrument is called?
I am not sure I mentioned earlier we have an Ayi coming cleaning every Saturday. Is so great to come home to a whole apartment clean with new sheets on the bed and washed clothes on the hangers at the end of my 6 days working week! I pay about 45 kr fr this luxury.
Not a luxury though is the crowded metro. But I get a lot of inspiration for choreography here during the rush hours… there are interesting ways of how a lot of people are copying with small space. Especially if they have luggage or family members with them, too much clothes on, standing close to someone that stinks and so on. Most popular activity though is to try to have as little interaction with other people as possible by looking down on their cellphone, 9 out 10 of the passengers I would say.
Bonus for this month’s blog post is this exotic car. How often in Scandinavia do you find a pink hello kitty Ferrari? This one belongs to one of my dance moms...
