On September 14, 2025, the 11th NTD Television International Classical Chinese Dance Competition concluded successfully at the Sugar Loaf Performing Arts Center in New York State. Huang Shini, a contestant from California, stood out with her steady dance moves and delicate interpretation, winning the Excellence Award.
Her performance piece “Scent of Hundred Flowers” tells the story of an ancient girl who stumbles into a colorful garden, encountering a multitude of flowers, birds, and beautiful scenery. Initially shy, she then frolics around, eventually showing a sense of reluctance to leave. With elegant and delicate dance moves, Huang Shini portrayed the emotional ups and downs of the character, successfully conveying the artistic conception of the dance drama, earning enthusiastic applause from the audience.
At just 13 years old, Huang Shini is a Taiwanese figure skating champion and a member of the Taiwan national team. She mentioned that she has been learning both figure skating and Chinese classical dance simultaneously. “I started with Chinese classical dance first before learning figure skating, so dance actually helped me,” she said.
This was Huang Shini’s first time participating in the NTD Classical Chinese Dance competition. To prepare for this event, she started training six months in advance, juggling between her studies, figure skating, and dance, yet she found joy in the process. “Participating in the competition keeps my mind sharp,” she said.
She admitted that her goal in participating this time was not merely to win awards but to observe, learn, and improve herself. “I want to see how other competitors perform and learn from them,” she said. “I noticed that their movements are graceful, their emotional expression is excellent, their knees are straight, and their balance is stable, from which I have gained a lot of benefits.”
Regarding the core body technique of Chinese classical dance, the “hand accompanies body, hips accompany legs” technique, Huang Shini emphasized the importance of extending dance movements and body control. “Even if it’s just striking a pose, I make sure that the movement extends as far as possible, as if reaching for a target, so that the dance posture appears more graceful.”
In terms of emotional expression, she relies on music and “muscle memory” to get into character. “When the music plays, my facial expressions and emotions naturally surface, allowing me to focus more on the movements themselves and accurately execute every detail.”
She emphasized that when dancing, one must think with the “heart” first, starting from the mind to drive the body. “This way, the person’s state will open up, and the dance will truly extend outward.”
As for her future plans, Huang Shini hopes to learn choreography as she grows older. She said, “This means I can choreograph movements for both dance and figure skating.”
Additionally, she wishes to further learn about traditional Chinese culture…