To promote the exchange, cooperation, and integrated development of global dance education, during the period of hosting the “2025 Beijing International Ballet Competition for Dance Schools and Dance Performance”, Beijing Dance Academy, with the support of the “World Dance Education Alliance”, invited 10 renowned dance instructors from 8 countries (recommended by alliance members) to conduct 10 dance workshops. In these workshops, participating dancers and performers from various countries, international students and art troupe students of universities in Beijing, and students of Beijing Dance Academy attended the classes given by the 10 instructors. They experienced diverse dance cultures such as Chinese classical dance, Chinese folk dance, ballet, Slovak folk dance, Southeast Asian dance, and contemporary dance, and felt the artistic charm that transcends language barriers.
1.Body Rhythm of Chinese Classical Dance
Instructor: SHAO Weiqiu
Recommending Institution: Beijing Dance Academy
Workshop Description: This workshop employs an integrated approach of music and dance to create an immersive aesthetic experience. Through focused on expression and controlled breathing, it coordinates the twisting, leaning, circular, and curved movements of the body. Participants will perceive the unique aesthetics of Chinese classical dance, characterized by the harmony of solid and void and the unity of form and spirit.
2.Classical Ballet
Instructor: Kevin Michel X Durwael
Recommending Institution: Royal Ballet School of Antwerp
Workshop Description: This workshop focuses on both building a solid technical foundation and musicality and artistic expression, starting with barre work and moving to center work and short choreographies.
3.Contemporary Class and Choreography Workshop
Instructor: Andras Lukacs
Recommending Institution: National Dance Theatre Budapest
Workshop Description: The core is to develop the contemporary dance skills by teaching them some of his choreographies. The target is to give a new perspective and knowledge to the students and help them to a new experience as a dancer.
4. Contemporary Dance: What? Where? When?
Instructor: Eva Recacha Garcia
Recommending Institution: London Contemporary Dance School
Workshop Description: Participants will do individual or group creative tasks to explore the building of dance materials. They are supposed to fulfill the aim by improvisation and generating and manipulating choreographic materials like time, space, relationships and structuring devices to shape short dances and watch each other and discuss the findings together. Together with Eva, participnts will explore movement ideas and physical states of the body, using rhythm as a starting point. The course would be fast-paced but well-tailored and arranged to ensure everyone can make the most out of the experience.
5. Dunhuang Style of Chinese Classical Dance
Instructor: SHI Min
Recommending Institution: Beijing Dance Academy
Workshop Description: Inspiration and Meditation: Based on the lively depictions of Apsaras in the Dunhuang frescoes,located on the Silk Road of Western China with over 1000 years of history, this course focuses on training three core elements of the dance style: hand gestures, dynamic rhythm (Qi Yun), and spiritual essence (Shen Yun). It guides dancers to use breath as the driving force, hand movements as the medium of expression, and spiritual conception as the core of artistic conveyance. The ultimate goal is to master the essence of Dunhuang dance—”vivid rhythmic vitality”—allowing the dynamic beauty of classical art to merge deeply with inner meditative awareness.
6. Embodied Southeast Asia: Exploring Contemporary Dance through Technicality and Cultural Exchange
Instructor: Muhammad Fairul Azreen bin Mohd Zahid
Recommending Institution: University of the Arts, Singapore
Workshop Description: The “Embodied Southeast Asia” workshop integrates contemporary dance with Southeast Asian traditional dance forms, aiming to enhance participants’ physical techniques, including lower torso strength, coordination, and movement fluency, while deepening their understanding of Southeast Asian cultural identity within contemporary dance. It also focuses on fostering cultural exploration, self-reflection, and empathy, encouraging dancers to negotiate and embody new cultures, understand how personal backgrounds influence dance practices, and appreciate diverse perspectives through movement creation and discussion.
7. Experiencing Chinese Ethnic and Folk Dance
Instructor: GUO Lei
Recommending Institution: Beijing Dance Academy
Workshop Description: This course will selectively teach style combinations of Chinese Han folk dances or Chinese ethnic minority Dai dances, or both, based on students’ proficiency. It aims to help students master the unique styles and cultural essence of Chinese Ethnic and Folk Dance, enhancing their ability to appreciate and interprete different dance styles rooted in diverse cultural backgrounds.
8. History, Legacy, and Future of Modern Dance
Instructor: Deborah Damast
Recommending Institution: New York University
Workshop Description: This workshop integrates Graham, Limón, Horton, Humphrey, and Taylor’s historic techniques with contemporary dance aesthetics, focusing on grounded fluidity, dynamic musicality, and innovative pedagogy within a joy-centered community.
9. Main Specifics of Slovak Folk Dance Technique
Instructor: Stanislav Marišler
Recommending Institution: The Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava
Workshop Description: The technique of Slovak folk dance is defined as a rhythmic dance of the feet. This rhythm is sometimes created by stomping and clapping, bud many of the rhythmic movements are not sonorous. In combination with the bouncing movements a unique dance style typical for the region of Slovakia was created. The workshop will teach male, female and couple dance performances.
10. Three-Dimensional Awareness, Three-Dimensional Body
Instructor: Ewelina Cieśla
Recommending Institution: Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice
Workshop Description: This workshop explores choreography through the senses: How can we stay in improvisation, let movement guide the body, and remain connected to space and others? Focusing on the sense of touch, we will use Contact Improvisation and the Polish Contemporary Dance Technique to cultivate a “double presence” – balancing self and environment, inside and outside, memory and immediacy. In addition to practical exploration, a short lecture will share insights from teaching experiences at the Dance Department of the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice.