A man in black clothes jumps high into the air. Before he lands, he makes a pose. Sometimes, he carries a red fan. With long white sleeves (袖子), he spreads his arms like wings (翅膀). His dance is often drawing crowds.
He is the Chinese dancer Ma Jiaolong. Since 2020, he has begun to make short videos of himself dancing in London. He has performed at the city's parks. Till now, the 35-year-old has already 5 million followers on Douyin, where he shares his videos.
Classical Chinese dance joins martial arts (武术) movements with traditional Chinese opera. He started to learn it at 12. "I was attracted by the dancers who played the roles of ancient heroes through classical Chinese dance", said Ma. Later, Ma studied at a dancing school in Beijing. Since 2019, he has been teaching classical Chinese dance at Goldsmiths, University of London.
Two years ago, Ma began to give online classes. In his small home, he could only make small moves. One day, he took his wife's suggestion and danced at Greenwich Park, a popular place for tourists. She recorded Ma. He then edited (剪辑) the video, and sent it to friends. His friends loved it and shared it online. People often want to know more about his performances. While dancing, he likes to interact (互动) with them. As his videos went popular, he received messages from people around the world.
"It's a great way to introduce Chinese dance to the world, " said Ma.
