Chinese Dance Classes


Oak Park FCC sponsors Chinese Dance Classes for children and adolescents.

The classes are open to all children and students do not need to be Oak Park FCC members, or Chinese, to participate. Both girls and boys as young as 4 years old may enroll.

Dance students perform at the annual Oak Park FCC Chinese New Year Celebration, Oak Park School District’s annual Ethnic Fest and various other cultural events in Oak Park and surrounding communities. In July 2009, they were honored to perform with the Chinese Fine Arts Society in “QiXi,” a dance hike in Millennium Park, depicting a beautiful Chinese love story.


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Class Information

The classes are designed for three levels of instruction:
  • The Guai Guai (“Sweetheart”) class is designed for young, beginning students who are four through six years old.
  • The Mei Mei (“Little Sister”) class is designed for intermediate students who are seven through 10 years old.
  • The Jie Jie (“Big Sister”) class is designed for advanced students who are 10 through 13 years old.
In addition, personalized solo, duet and small group instruction is available for senior Oak Park students who are young adolescents.

All classes are held on Monday. There are three sessions each year:
  • Fall (early September to Chinese New Year)
  • Spring (post-Chinese New Year to Memorial Day)
  • Summer

The Fall and Spring sessions are conducted at Whittier School in Oak Park located at Harvey Avenue and Augusta Boulevard.

The Summer Session is conducted at Parkview Presbyterian Church located at Oak Park Avenue and Jackson Boulevard.

Class times are as follows:
  • The Guai Guai class meets from 3:30 to 4:15 pm
  • The Mei Mei class meets from 4:15 to 5:15 pm
  • The Jie Jie class meets from 5:15 to 6:15 pm

The 2009 Fall Session began on Monday, September 14, 2009. However, open enrollment allows for late entry and pro-rated fees for students who begin after the class start date.

Cost is $15 per student per one-hour class and $11.25 per student per 45 minute class.

An additional $1 per class is assessed students who are not Oak Park FCC members to cover the insurance costs paid by Oak Park FCC.

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About the Instructor and Choreographer

Ms. Qiuyue Jin provides instruction for all classes and she provides the choreography for all performances. Her instruction combines traditional ballet with authentic Chinese folk dances of the various Chinese minorities.

Ms Jin’s career spans decades and countries. As a young woman, Ms. Jin was identified as a rising dance star in China. She received China’s highest honors and a national reputation for authentic ethnic minority dance. Her career progressed from being a nationally-ranked performer to a master instructor and choreographer. Her students have gone on to become some of China’s premier stage-program directors. One of her students, Tang Wen Jian, was among the small team who directed the opening and closing sessions of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Since arriving in the United States in 1994, Ms. Jin has continued to teach and direct performances of Chinese traditional folk dances. The Illinois Arts Council has honored Ms. Jin and her students with five separate grants for excellence in traditional and folk arts. She is also a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Heritage Fellowship nominee.

Ms. Jin shares, “It is gratifying to see dancers develop their skills and abilities. I take great pleasure in seeing them blossom into great dancers. I am their gardener, nurturing each. Watching each flourish – that is my happiness.”

For additional information, or to enroll in a class, please contact Mary Kay via e-mail or via phone at 708.383.2152.