Toward Demarginalization: Navigating Chinese Dance and Movement in US Higher Education

This study investigates opportunities for and challenges faced by Chinese dance and movement educators at the higher education level in the United States, drawing from interviews with seven influential Chinese dance and movement academics. The article probes the boundaries of what is considered Chinese dance in the US context, including Chinese interdisciplinary "xiqu" (often mistranslated as Chinese opera) and martial arts. Background information gathered from US dance and theater departments indicates the lack of Chinese dance and movement courses overall and describes the common formats for including these forms in higher education curricula. The interview discussion highlights the navigation involved in teaching Chinese dance and movement in the United States via four major categories: Institutional, Curricular, Pedagogical, and Cultural issues.