At a glance
Traditional Chinese Dance (TCD) at UW seeks funding for its Annual Showcase, which features diverse ethnic Chinese dance… Read full summary
- Funding received
- 2024-2025
- Small
- Awarded
- $1,280
- Funding partners
-
- Services and Activities Fee (SAF)
Traditional Chinese Dance (TCD) at UW seeks funding for its Annual Showcase, which features diverse ethnic Chinese dance styles to promote cultural awareness. The event highlights traditional folk, classical, and contemporary Chinese dance, fostering a sense of community and cultural understanding at UW and in Seattle. CSF funding will support venue costs, sustainable costumes and props, marketing, and educational media content, including videos explaining the cultural significance of each performance. TCD also engages the community through free workshops and performances, aiming to create an inclusive, sustainable event that celebrates Chinese culture and fosters unity through the arts.
Traditional Chinese Dance (TCD) at UW aims to build an inclusive community of dancers and spread Chinese culture through performances, workshops, and various events in Seattle. Our primary focus this year is raising funds for our Annual Showcase, which highlights diverse ethnic Chinese dance styles, including traditional folk, classical, and contemporary Chinese dance. This showcase not only serves as a platform for students to share their passion for dance but also fosters cultural awareness within the UW and broader Seattle community, a meaningful experience for all involved.
CSF funding will be allocated to several key areas: (1) funding our centrally located, accessible performance venue, Kane Hall, (2) providing sustainable costumes and props that honor cultural authenticity, (3) enhancing marketing and outreach efforts, and (4) producing media content to enrich the audience experience. We plan to create educational introduction videos with English and Chinese closed captions for each dance, offering insights into the historical and cultural significance of each performance. This will help bridge cultural gaps and provide deeper context for our audience. We are also committed to making sustainable choices by reusing costumes/props for multiple performances, reducing waste, and using digital ticketing and promotional materials.
This project builds upon TCD’s previous efforts to share Chinese culture through dance but scales up our impact by creating a larger, more inclusive annual event. We regularly host free, beginner-friendly community dance workshops and perform at various events in the UW and Seattle communities to engage a broader audience and offer educational experiences that promote cultural understanding. These activities culminate to our final performance of the year, our Showcase, where our months of preparation, dedication, and passion are presented on stage. This event is not just a celebration of our hard work but also a meaningful opportunity for the audience to experience the richness and diversity of Chinese dance as well as witness the love that surrounds our team and community.
Through this project, TCD aims to contribute to sustainability at UW by promoting cultural diversity and inclusivity, fostering a sense of community, and creating an impact through shared cultural experiences. Our Annual Showcase is more than just a performance; it’s a celebration of identity, unity, and the power of the arts to bring people together across different backgrounds. With CSF’s support, we hope to create an event that leaves a lasting impression, sparking curiosity and dialogue about the culture we represent.
Michelle Zhang
Project lead
- miczhang@uw.edu
- Affiliation
- Student
- Years
- 1 year(s) remaining at UW
- Affiliated groups
- Traditional Chinese Dance at UW, Kidsteam UW
Request amount and budget
Plans for financial longevity
After the CSF funding ends, TCD will continue to spread Chinese culture through performances, workshops, and digital content. Each year after the showcase, we would post our full showcase on YouTube for those who want to access it later or for those who couldn’t make it. This digital archive will help preserve and share our efforts year after year, showcasing the progress and dedication of our team to old and new members as well as the community. The annual showcase isn’t just an event that we put on but a standing tradition within our dance team to show the world what we have learned throughout the year and months of hard work all for this day. Each one of us has spent hours learning the group dances plus potential solos, duos, etc. to put on this grand show that we look forward to each year. TCD aims to grow its impact and keep the tradition of Chinese dance thriving at UW long after the funding period ends.
Fall quarter:
- Start learning our group dances and solos
- Booking confirmed for Kane 130
- Actively looking and preparing for potential sponsors and grants, and holding fundraisers.
- Buy our group dance costumes
Winter quarter:
- Finish and polish our group dances and solos
- Film video testimonies/introductions for Showcase
Spring quarter:
- March - April: Have most sponsors and grants finalized, have started with the editing process for the video testimonies
- The first week of April:
- Ticketing information confirmed
- Showcase announcement, looking for volunteers, MC, etc.
- Second-third week of April:
- Sponsors for food are confirmed
- Post fliers around campus to market showcase
- Solidify Volunteer list and confirm with them
- Fourth week of April:
- Video promo of the showcase is posted
- Have big poster pictures printed
- Equipment is either brought or planned for renting
- First week of May:
- Showcase Books printed out and all ready
- Send out initial text and expectations to volunteers
- Right before showcase:
- Final reminders to volunteers and to team about expectations
- Thursday before the showcase: full show run-through
- May 18th is our 3rd Annual Showcase!!
Plans for long-term project management
In TCD, we believe everyone on the team has an equal opportunity and chance at succeeding. We believe that everyone on the team can lead and pave the way for a greater and better future for our RSO. As we are a fairly new organization, each year is an opportunity to grow and learn from previous experiences. We encourage experimentation and foster leadership for our members throughout the year, especially during workshops where they can plan and teach a class of over 30 members of our community. At the end of the year, members are encouraged to apply for leadership positions within the team such as Artistic Directors, Public Relations, Internal Affairs, Operations, and Events. All exec members hold shadowing programs leading up to applications so that members for open positions can transition seamlessly. After members are elected, from spring to the end of summer they will be able to access the master documents made by previous exec members for their respective roles and continue meeting 1:1 with graduating seniors to get used to the role. Our team highly values teamwork and support where we can count on each other and reach out to even those who already graduated.
Problem statement
Supporting us will immensely benefit the sustainability of preserving traditional Chinese culture and simultaneously help the team spread awareness to the general public. Chinese dance is something that's underrepresented at UW and we hope to bring this special art form that has been around for hundreds of years to the university’s doorstep. Through performances, we hope to foster a deeper appreciation for Chinese cultural heritage, especially among students unfamiliar with these traditions and dance. Furthermore, the need for sustainable costumes. Every year we would learn new group dances and this resulted us in buying cheaply made costumes that would start falling apart sometimes even before our first performances to reduce costs, let alone wearing it on showcase day. Contributing to textile waste as we have to buy replacements before showcase. By investing in higher-quality costumes and props, we aim to create a more sustainable and reusable approach to preserving our cultural heritage here at UW.
Problem context
Our project integrates into the existing UW ecosystem by complementing ongoing efforts to promote cultural diversity, inclusivity, and sustainability on campus. Several cultural clubs promote diversity within campus and TCD had the honor to perform for many of them. Most prominently, CSA and Wushu Club have a strong-standing tradition of celebrating Chinese heritage through events and workshops. With TCD, we aim to complement these initiatives by introducing dance that combines storytelling and music. Offering a new and distinct cultural experience that is currently underrepresented at UW.
Measure the impacts
| Impact / goal | Metric(s) of success | UW stakeholders impacted |
|---|---|---|
| Through our performances, we hope our audience can discover all about these dance forms and their significance within Chinese history. Additionally, enriching their understanding of this vibrant cultural heritage that has been around for hundreds of years | Have at least 200 people at our showcase | Undergraduate, Graduate, Alumni, Academic staff, Admin staff |
Communication tactics and tools
When it comes to communication, Traditional Chinese Dance at UW excels in building strong connections with our audience and community. We prioritize marketing to engage and show appreciation for our supporters and friends and family. Our social media is vibrant with educational posts about Chinese culture, team takeovers that give a behind-the-scenes look at TCD, Q&A sessions, and promotions for upcoming events. Additionally, TCD holds quarterly workshops for our community. These workshops are beginner-friendly and open for the general public to come and explore what its like dancing different Chinese dance styles coming from various ethnic groups such as classical, Dai, Huang, etc. Lastly, we also hold quarterly fundraising events by tabling and participating in tabling events such as admitted student day, etc. in order to raise awareness and promote future events.
Outreach communication plan
Traditional Chinese Dance at UW actively engages with the UW community and the greater Seattle area through performances, workshops, and collaborations with RSOs like CSA and Wushu. We leverage social media platforms like Instagram to promote our events and invite students, families, and community members to experience Chinese culture. Our project benefits these groups by offering a deeper appreciation of traditional Chinese dance, ultimately fostering cultural awareness and inclusivity.
Student involvement
When it comes to Showcase, we offer volunteer opportunities for our community members who are taking the time out of their day to help us run a show. If needed, individuals can fulfill volunteering hours by helping out since this is a whole-day process that needs a lot of helping hands. One of our exec members would be happy to sign off any documents that require proof of volunteering hours.