IT'S 6AM ON a humid summer morning in Shanghai. Much of the city is still asleep, but Zhongshan Park in the Changning district is already a hive of activity. The air is filled with the sound of laughter and exercise instructions. Towards the park centre, the mix gets livelier with drum beats, singing and samba music.
'This is our place for staying fit,' says Wang Mengxiang, 53, as she puts on a pair of high-heeled dance shoes. 'Most of the time we'll have about 20 people, and you can stay as long as you want. Some people are here for more than four hours every morning.'
Wang and her dance partner Zhang Shize, 67, have been practising Latin and ballroom steps together for the past two years. 'After retiring, I felt I was getting older day by day,' Zhang says. 'Maybe that's why I've been feeling out of touch with the new Shanghai. It's not right to sit at home and play mahjong all day.'
No one's sure when and how the mainland's older generations began dancing in the streets. But the practice took off in the mid-90s and dancers such as Zhang and Wang are now a familiar sight in cities from Guangzhou to Tianjin. Traditional folk dances such as Dayangge or 'waist-drum dance' are as popular as Latin dance. Dancing and singing clubs have become so widespread that groups regularly host district and inter-city competitions.
Like their peers, Wang and Zhang joined the dance gatherings because they offered a cheap way to work out and socialise. Most are organised by enthusiasts, who hire the services of an instructor for the daily sessions. Participation is casual and there's no fee aside from a monthly contribution, usually five yuan, towards hiring a teacher.
'We're getting old, and exercise is becoming increasingly important for us,' says Zhang. 'Retired people like us can't afford expensive gym membership, but we want to live happily and healthily.'
