7th Heaven: Wushudance: The Legends

Wushudance... a dance that is now so linked to the KE7 DanzDemonz. Inspired by wushu and dance, the fusion seems to be envied among the other halls. Being involved in all 3 wushudances and their various versions, I am really sad that I probably might not be able to join the 4th installment, if there is one.

Taking a walk down memory lane, it all started in my first year when Fen suddenly had this crazy idea of injecting some wushu elements into a dance item(probably conceived together with Eric and Felix). Hence Fen, Yifan (Dance God at that time) and I choreographed the first ever wushudance which was performed in the last FHD of that year. It was a simple dance actually, with some basic wushu sets and the only props being the chinese fans. We also had very few dancers and wushu athletes then, but the audience simply loved it. Wushudance 1 was used subsequently in other events in my second year. This includes the KE7 Wushu Display held at Far East.

Gaining much popularity and publicity, Fen went on to choreograph Wushudance 2 just before my 3rd year. With an experienced cast of seniors including Jonathan Tan the Gymnast, Wai Keng the Ice Skater, Hui Ling the Theatre and Drama Teacher, and Wei Jye the Sportsman, Wushudance 2 was mastered in just 2 weeks and was performed for KE7 Block Day and the Dance Synergy concert.

This time the traditional dance pants was used to make us look more like warriors, and our new props were large square-shaped cloths which had weights sown on one of their ends to enhance the cloth-spinning. With a more vibrant mixture of music and the use of graceful Chinese Dance moves together with extremely slow Taichi moves, wushudance got even more popular. Just like its first installment, Wushudance 2 was used again and again for many functions too.

Just when all of us thought it would stop at 2, Fen went on to choreograph Wushudance 3 in the midst of my 4th year! The costumes are revised to look even more colourful now. With more powerful dancers this time such as Sharon Lynn and Peter, Wushudance 3 was rewarded with an even greater success. Unlike the previous two wushudances which used Jay Chow songs, Wushudance 3 used the song Evolution by Ayumi Hamasaki, which is a refreshing change actually. The number of dancers also increased to 18! Twice that used in Wushudance 1! First performed in KE7 90th Anniversary Dinner and Dance Uncensored '06, the dance encompasses massive formation changes and a great amount of solo performances.

Perhaps one of the many reasons why wushudance is so successful is that it brings the audience into a world of wushu and dance, pretty much like what we see in chinese swordplay novels or japanese anime. This fantasy is still burning in the hearts of the audience and dancers alike. And unlike my 1st year, both KE7 wushu and dance teams now have many skilled performers then can push wushudance to even greater heights and realize the next wushudance! My hope is that Wushudance 4 can be a combined performance, instead of a dance-based performance. There are still a lot of good performing elements to insert in.

It would really be exciting to see how both culture groups will go next year with the two love-birds Jeremy and Sharon as Wushu and Dance heads respectively. As much as I would really want to be a part of their future performances, my career just doesn't allow me much time to do so. Just a thought, if I never did enter KE7, would there still be a wushudance? Hmm...

History of Wushudance Performances

Wushudance 1:
Mar '03 - KE7 Formal Hall Dinner
Jan '04 - Bugis Junction 6th XQRJ Publicity
Jan '04 - Riverside CNY Performance
Feb '04 - KE7 Hall Bash at Zouk
Feb '04 - KE7 Wushu Display at Far East

Wushudance 2:
Jul '04 - KE7 Block Day
Jul '04 - Dance Synergy Concert
Sept '04 - 1st Annual Drama Competition
Oct '04 - KE7 Internal Cultural Night '04
Oct '04 - Boon Lay Sec Sch Parents-Teachers' Session
Dec '04 - D'dance Chinese Dance Showcase
Mar '05 - NUS Open House
Mar '05 - Combined Halls Dance Uncensored '05
Sept '05 - Ridge View MAF Celebrations

Wushudance 3:
Mar '06 - KE7 90th Anniversary Dinner
Mar '06 - Combined Halls Dance Uncensored '06
Apr '06 - KE7 Formal Hall Dinner

Videos of Wushudance Performances