Rick Li (left) and William Li (right) performing "Seven Step Poem." (Dai Bing/The Epoch Times)

PURCHASE, N.Y.--The semifinals of New Tang Dynasty Television´s fourth International Classical Chinese Dance Competition concluded on Sept. 11 at Performing Arts Center of Purchase College, SUNY in Westchester County, N.Y.

The competition aims to provide a platform for qualified classical Chinese dancers from different parts of the world to share and improve.

This year, contestants from the United States, Canada, France, Australia, and New Zealand partook in the competition, each performing one dance routine they had choreographed themselves, and another piece that shows the required dance movements such as a series of turns, flips, and tumbling techniques.

"It was obvious that the many contestants did even better today. I think they learned a lot during the preliminary contest. I feel very glad to see their improvements," said Chen Yung-Chia, principle dancer and spokesperson for the judging committee.

"This year´s contestants are very skilled dancers. The semifinals included splendid performances. I think tomorrow´s finals will be even better," added judge Michelle Ren.

Judges of the competition announced the finalists after today´s session.

An Introduction to Classical Chinese Dance

China´s 5,000 years of civilization gives endless inspiration for classical Chinese dance.

Chinese classical dance was passed down from ancient China. Ancient cultures of different period of times are infused into the genes of Chinese people, forming a kind of bearing that is associated with every move of a human bearing, call "Yun."

At the same time, culture heritages were passed on to dancers. Together, these two transmissions formed into a systematic way of instructing classical Chinese dance.

Angelia Wang from the junior female division performing "Dawn of Spring" (Dai Bing/The Epoch Times)

The dance form therefore owns unique characteristics that allow a dancer to express the inner feelings of a character in great depths with the use of dance movements and techniques.

"The contestants displayed good use of techniques, and of course that is very important. What´s even more precious is that they could use the techniques to portray the characters well," said Ren.

Every piece of dance from the competition told a lively story. Contestants portrayed renowned historic figures, heavenly gods and beauties, and traditional characters in folk tales through skilled and artistic movements.

For example, William Li and Rick Li´s duet portrayed sons of Cao Cao, a powerful warlord from 1,500 years ago. One of the brothers composed a poem in seven footsteps to remind the other that violent power struggle between siblings would be regarded as ignoble in history.

"I got the inspiration during a history class. We learned about Chinese history and I did some research myself, too," said Rick Li.

Alison Chen presented a childhood story of Ying Tai, a key character from a famous folk tale called the "Butterfly Lovers," also known as the Chinese version of "Romeo and Juliet."

Young Yingtai was born into a wealthy family in ancient China where girls were mostly brought up at home. She dressed up like a boy in order to be able to go to school.

Chen Chia-Ling from the adult female divison performing "the Water Fairy." (Dai Bing/The Epoch Times)

It was not easy to figure out how to portray Ying Tai. "Sometimes I thought that I was her. I thought that I was a girl from ancient China where girls could hardly step out of the doors, and I dressed up like a boy so that I can go to school and learn," said Chen. "It took me quite some time and practice to figure out the right way to portray [her]."

Another contestant, Angelia Wang, who earned first place in last year´s competition, performed "Dawn of Spring." Based on a renown poem of the same name from the ancient Tang Dynasty, the piece, featuring a series of marvelous jumps and flips, portrayed a young girl who awakens joyfully in the dawn of spring, amidst singing birds and falling petals.

Several contestants used special costumes and props to tell their stories, such as dresses with the long and loose water sleeves, fans, and traditional instruments.

Chen Chia-Ling picked up a hem from her blue sundress and turned with light footsteps to create the scene of a lovely fairy dancing in the water. "It was all about her purity and joyfulness," said Chen.

Finals will be held at 10 a.m., Sunday, Sept. 12 at the Performing Arts Center of Purchase College, SUNY in Westchester County, New York.

Finalists:

Junior female

Selena Ren (New York, USA)
Faustina Quach (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Miranda Zhou-Galati (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Alison Chen (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Qin Huan (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Lin Hsiao-Hung (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Angelia Wang (Feitian Academy of the Arts)

Junior male

Sam Pu (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Justin Lao (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Chen Jun-Cheng (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Alvin Song (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Chad Chen (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Rick Li (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
William Li (Feitian Academy of the Arts)

Adult Female

Chelsea Cai (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Annie Li (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Rachel Bastick (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Madeline Lobjois (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Nancy Wang (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Cheng Daoyong (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Chen Chia-Ling (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Cindy Liu (Shen Yun Performing Arts)

Adult male

Rocky Liao (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Jason Shi (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Lucas Lu (San Cai Academy, New Jersy, USA)
Golden Li (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Tony Xue (Feitian Academy of the Arts)
Tim Wu (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Steven Wang (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Jerry Zhang (Shen Yun Performing Arts)
Jeff Sun (Feitian Academy of the Arts)

Source http://theepochtimes.com/n2/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=42433&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=1