Day 4 - Monday 30 May 2011

The day began at the Beijing Dance Academy. We were there to view the practice sessions of the dance students as well as for our girls to be trained in some dance techniques.

Watching the students during their rigorous and inspriring practice of the Han Dynasty dance.

After watching the dance practice, our girls had the chance to be coached by these students on some basic cultural dance skills. Our girls really enjoyed themselves and benefitted from the one and a half hour long coaching and interaction session.

Our girls with their young student teachers.

A token of appreciation for the Head of the Dance Department at the Beijing Dance Competition.

Group photograph of the dance students and the Singapore pupils at the Beijing Dance Academy.

After lunch, our pupils continued with their training session with a dance instructor, focusing on the finer points of hand movements in a dance.

A certificate of participation was given to each pupil in recognition of her efforts in the dance workshops during the past 3 days. Their hard work had really paid off!

The girls are really looking forward to a day of sight-seeing at the Great Wall of China and shopping at Wang Fujin's Xinghua Bookstore and Xiu Shui Street tomorrow before they head back home at midnight!

The day started very early at 5.30 am, with the teachers getting the girls ready for the Beijing International Youth Chinese Dance Competition.

The teachers had to help the girls in applying their make-up and tying up their hair into neat buns in order to look their best when they performed on stage.

After a quick breakfast, we were off to the Beijing School of Music and Dance for the competition. When we arrived, we joined the other participants in the dry run. Here we are on stage at the end of the dry run.

Our girls were in the Group category, together with the other 3 schools from Singapore, namely Bukit Panjang Primary, Mayflower Primary and Compassvale Primary and a few other Beijing schools.

Although the competition was very keen, our girls did their very best and put in much effort in the rehearsal and the actual performance.

 

Their hard work all these months paid off as our girls garnered the Gold Award in the competition!

Posing with the rest of the participants after the competition.



 

Posing with our trophy and certificate, together with Ms Theresa Pi, our local dance instructor who was invited to be one of the intenational judges for the competition.

 

In the evening, we visited Beijing Huguang Guidl Hall, a small museum with exhibits pertaining to Chinese opera, before going to watch an acrobatic show.

Well done girls, we are indeed very proud of you!



Day 2 - Saturday 28 May 2011

Today we started the first day of our dance programme. We had an early day, waking up at 5.30 am and having our breakfast at 6 am. We had to set off from the hotel at 7 am to get to the Beijing Hai Yun Arts School by 8 am.

The Beijing Hai Yun Arts School is within the military compound and the students here stay in hostels on the premises.

 

Our pupils were treated to a wonderful display of dance skills by 2 groups of dance students from the School. We had the wonderful opportunity to sit in at 2 dance classes.

The first class was on the learning of Ji Ben Gong or Basic Skills incorporated with ballet.

See how poised they are!

Such precision and grace!

The second class was on Ju Mu Xun Lian  or Thematic Dance about Spring.

They really enthralled us with their talent, stamina and not to mention, their serious and committed attitude towards learning.

A token of appreication in the form of our digital art peice to the Head of Department Mdm Luo of the Beijing Hai Yun Dance School for organising the day's dance events.

Group pohotograph with the Head of Department Mdm Luo of the Beijing Hai Yun Dance School and our Chinese Dance Instructor, Mr Zhao.

Another group photograph with one of the sculpture works found on the school premises.

A great lunch treat - McDonald's!

At 2.30 pm, our pupils were given a Mongolian dance lesson on by Ms Li Zhen. She was an excellent teacher, who was able to impart the skills in a very nurturing and efficient way such that our girls were able to grasp them in a very short time.

It was indeed an eye-opening and beneficial day for all of us. The first-hand experience of the rigorous and intensive dance training at the Beijing Hai Yun Arts School, coupled with the training received by the highly talented teacher is indeed invaluable.

We also had a chance to interview 2 dance teachers from the School about its curriculum and programme. They were :

1)     Ms Teng Yue

2)     Ms Li Zhen

A) Students enter at 12 years old and they need to undergo an exam and audition before they are selected.

B) Undergo 5-year programme, from basic to advanced skills on the following  :

1)     Ballet

2)     Ming Jian Wu

3)     Ji Ben Gong

4)     Ju Mu Xun Lian (Theme Dance)

5)     Gu Dian Wu

C) School Prog :

• Lessons are on 51/2 days a week.
• 2 terms per year lasting 5 months per term.
• Holidays are between one to 2 months.

D) Typical Dance Curriculum for each day, interspersed with academic lessons on Maths, Science, History, Geography & Cultural Studies :

6.00 am to 6.30 am	Wake up
6.10 am to 8.00 am	Warming-Up & Breakfast
8.00 am to 9.30 am	1st lesson
9.30 am to 9.50 am	Rest
9.50 am to 11.20 am	2nd lesson
11.20 am to 12.15 pm	Lunch
12.15 pm – 1.30 pm	Rest and Afternoon Siesta
1.30 pm – 2.00 pm	Warming-Up
2.00 pm – 3.30 pm	1st Afternoon Lesson
3.30 pm – 4.30 pm	Rest
4.00 pm – 5.30 pm	2nd Afternoon Lesson
5.30 pm – 7.00 pm	Rest & Dinner
7.00 pm – 8.30 pm	Own Revision/Practice or Night Rehearsal
8.30 pm – 10.00 pm	Own Time
10.00 pm	Lights Out



 

The girls enjoyed every minute of the training and took the lessons very seriously too.

Day 1 - Fri 27 May 2011

All of us gathered on Thursday 26.5.11 at 10 pm at Changi Airport Terminal 3 Row 10 to prepare for boarding. We met our Tour Leader from ITT, Ms Wang Mei Yee. After the group photographs with our Principal Ms Chew, HOD MT Mdm Lim Peck Sin and SH ML/TL/CCA (Aesthetics) Mdm Hanizah, who went to send us off, we were ready to take off for Beijing.

We arrived safely at Beijing International Airport at 7.05 am on Fri 27.5.11. It was a smooth flight and all of us managed to catch some sleep throughout the flight. The airport is huge and we had to take a sky train from the one arrival hall to another to collect our baggage and to our coach. Thereafter, we met our Tour Guide from Beijing Ms Linda Wang who made us feel at home at once.

The first stop after the airport was for some sumtpuous dim sum breakfast. We ate you tiao, congee, yam and custard buns, sweet potato & chestnut cake, tea eggs, steamed cakes & kailan in oyster sauce. Group 2 posing with the local tour leader and Beijing tour guide.

Group 2 enjoying their Chinese tea before the meal. Cheers!

Group 3 waiting anxiously for the arrival of their congee!

After the hearty breakfast, we were off to visit the iconic China National Centre of the Performing Arts. There we learnt about traditional opera and about the stage, props, costumes, facial painting, style and make-up associated with the craft. We also had the chance to enter the massively impressive concert hall and musical theatre.

Can you guess what the girls are focussing on?

It's none other than the same China National Centre of the Performing Arts mentioned above at the main entrance.

Lunch was at the famous Quan Jude Peking Duck restaurant. We witnessed the chef slicing up the duck meat for us to wrap in the flour rolls. 

The girls had much fun wrapping and creating their own Peking Duck!

As the safety of our girls are of utmost importance, we had the hotel Safety Manager brief them on the evacuation procedures in the event of a fire when we checked into the hotel in the afternoon.

The last visit of the day to a place of interest was another icon of Beijing, the Beijing Olympics Stadium, also known as The Bird's Nest. What a fulfilling and eye-opening day for each one of us!