Street dance moves to a new beat

Ma believes that introducing Chinese elements into street dance should be more than just adding traditional costumes or music into the performance. Using techniques of old-school street dance, he believes dancers can still express the flavor of traditional Chinese style through movement.

"The general view of street dance is that it has a strong rhythm, like popping or break dancing," Ma says. "But it's not necessarily so. It can also be slow, smooth and expressive, like our aesthetics in the East."

That said, Ma's confidence when introducing Chinese elements did waver slightly at the very beginning, because some dancers wanted to keep a more original style.

"Street dance comes from the West, but dancers from every country can mix it with their own understanding," he explains. "This is an occasion for us to show how proud we are of our culture."

Dance can overcome barriers of language and culture to quickly build up emotional connections and friendship.

"A shy person can turn into someone very passionate in Latin dance, for example, like becoming someone completely different in performance," Ma says. "However, street dance is a reflection of your true self.

"In the show, not everyone is good at English (when communicating with one another)," he adds. "But once the music starts and you begin to dance, people will soon know who you really are and tune in your vibe."