Dancing in a public square - it's a typical feature of Chinese urban life known as "Guang Chang Wu," square dance. Promoted by Mao, transformed through daily practice, Chinese square dance has often been mocked as an old women's activity. Yet it provides community and therapy for millions who do it in Chinese cities and in the Chinese diaspora. In this episode, Serena Agbokhan interviews Chang Cheng about her research on Guang Chang Wu in Norway. Communist relic or the new zumba? You'll have to decide for yourself.

In Playing the Archive, ethnomusicologist Sydney Hutchinson and friends dive into experimental archival research with interviews, radio plays, & more. This podcast is a part of the Second World Music project. To learn more, visit http://secondworldmusic.wordpress.com.

Playing the Archive © 2025 by Sydney Hutchinson/Second World Music is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International