Dance in itself is a beautiful expression of art, beauty, grace and style for any culture. Cultural dance explores the meaning of what certain cultures represent. Cultural dance is passed down from generation to generation, and therefore allows past and present to share something in common. It allows each dancer to understand what it means to be a part of that culture on a deeper level. The Rutgers Chinese Dance Troupe (previously known as the Rutgers Chinese Cultural Dance Troupe) takes their dance seriously because it is such an integral part of Chinese culture. Just like in any country, different regions of China have different styles of cultural dance.

      3 years ago, forming a Chinese dance troupe was only an idea that floated around the minds of a few young girls. In the Fall of 2000, those girls created the Rutgers Chinese Cultural Dance Troupe with a group of ten girls. At the end of the year, only a dedicated few remained to learn the traditional flag dance. Those few valued the importance of learning these ethnic dances and sharing it with others, so they remained vowing to make the next year even better.

     Since then we have more than doubled in size, taken on more complex and professional dances. For the first time last year male members joined, expanding the varieties of dances we can perform. We have gone from the flag dance to doing ribbon dances, an ethnic dance from the XinJiang province, a fan dance, martial arts dance, and this year a Mongolian chopsticks dance. The dances were taught by a professional instructors who shared with us the true meaning of Chinese dance culture. On top of the cultural dances, we also include a modern American dance segment to our performances, which allows our Asian-American members to follow the mainstream pop culture as well. The Rutgers Chinese Dance Troupe has also been cited in half a dozen articles in major and local newspapers in the area.

     This year, we have had many more requests to perform at Rutgers University functions as well as functions in throughout the New Jersey area. The number of members this year has almost quadrupled the number from the first year. Not only have the number of males in the troupe increased, but we have become more ethnically diverse, with Indian and Filipino students joining as well. We are a multiethnic group of students who share an interest in Chinese cultural dance, not a group of Chinese students interested in dance.

     More important than dancing though, is the concept of making new friends. Starting from last year, all our members have formed close bonds with each other. Outside of the time spent at practices and performances, we still find time to meet and hang out. We've held dinners and get-togethers to share laughter and good times. Although putting on a good cultural show is one of our main priorities as an organization, we know that enjoying the whole process is also just as important.