Shall We Dance?

This winter, as the hordes head off to overcrowded gyms, savvy fitness-seekers are turning to an alternative mode of exercise gathering crowds of devotees in Shanghai. For the gym rats sick of packed work out zones, the runners who can't stand Shanghai's pollution and chaotic intersections, and the curious readers tempted to dabble in new territory, dance classes may provide just the right amount of freedom to move. 

Aside from basic ballet, hip-hop, and jazz dance classes, Shanghai dance studios offer more exotic selections, including pole, belly, Latin, reggae, African, and even ‘sexy’ dancing. Andrea Go, a seasoned dance instructor hailing from Canada with six years of teaching experience, currently conducts hip-hop, jazz, Yogalates, aerobic dance, and other classes with Sport For Life (a professional coaching agency), Soul Dancing, (a Shanghai dance studio and performance company), and she’ll also soon be starting her own studio (A Studio). 

We sat in on one of her Sunday evening jazz classes, which was casual, but upbeat and enthusiastic. There is no dance experience required, and all six students learn basic moves – jumps, turns, spins – and work on a routine together. But after 15 minutes, the girls in the class were already working up a sweat. 

“I think a lot of people have inhibitions, and dance ... forces you to come out of yourself, and reawakens forgotten confidence.”

Go claims it’s the "intrinsic muscles" being worked. “The muscles you work out [through dancing] are not the same as the ones you work out in normal exercise. You work more specific ones, get into the smaller ones, and the muscles worked out will change depending on your routine,” she says. “It's a holistic experience.”

Dance classes can cater for any age and usually consist of 15 to 20 students per class. But “it really depends on the studio, and its policy.” According to Go, “Six is perfect. There aren't too many people, and there aren't too few. Group classes are good because you can really feed off everyone's energy, and learn from other people ... you also get used to people watching you, which you don't get from a private lesson.” 

But, she adds, private lessons also have their advantages, in that “the instructor only focuses on you, and the class pace is entirely up to you.” It goes without saying that these lessons are much more expensive, but might be worth the investment for more serious students.

As for dance styles, the variety available may seem daunting at first, but at least there’s something that appeals to everyone. Choosing a dance style is really up to the individual: "They say hip-hop is associated with guys, but there are girls who are amazing at it. I think it's more about personal style – what interests you, what works, how you express,” Go says. If you’re after a faster-paced workout, then it’s best to check out the more upbeat styles. But note that speed isn't everything, and becoming toned and fit with ballet is also manageable. 

Apart from the workout side, Go says there’s more to dance, a personal essence which she believes makes it an art form. “Dance isn't just exercise, it is art. And just like any art, you need to craft together piece by piece movements depending on emotion, experience, soul and spirit; in short, your personal essence – and that's what separates one dancer from another.”

Annelie Olofsson of Sweden studied ballet in France, and has now taught in China for over a year. She says: “You can really tell who feels the rhythm when they're dancing; if they really get it or not.”   

Olivia Fu, one of Go's students, took up dance lessons for exercise two years ago, and loves it. “Dance makes poetry of your body, mind, and soul. It allows your spirit to shine and sheds the unnecessary. It leaves behind the most important part: your inner beat,” she says. “I think a lot of people have inhibitions, and dance also helps them shed them. It forces you to come out of yourself, and reawakens forgotten confidence.”

Sara Schneeberg, another student taking jazz lessons at Soul Dancing, says the variety of people taking dancing classes in Shanghai might come as a surprise. “There is a huge age range. You see people in their 20s a lot, but there are also older people, particularly in the Latin dance classes,” she says. 

Go is quick to concur. “There aren't just young women taking classes,” she says. “You can find young women, older women, young men, older men, every age.”  

That elliptical machine no longer working you? You might just find the answer to your fitness dilemma in the most unexpected, pole twirling, sexy salsa place.

Soul Dancing, 2/3F, 1 Maoming Nan Lu, (near Yan’an Zhong Lu).

Tel: 6256 4400. Web: www.souldancing.cn

A Studio, 1 Park Avenue, 500 Changde Lu, near Xinzha Lu. Tel: 137 6163 2407

Sport For Life.

Tel: 6282 1762 / 6281 1905. Web: www.sportforlife.com.cn 

- Jade Zhu