PISCATAWAY, NJ—The Rutgers Chinese Dance Troupe started in 2000 as an all-female dance group, but since then the team has grown to include male members who study and perform martial arts.

Fourteen years later, the team is bigger and better than ever with almost ten new members that just joined this fall.

Tonight, the troupe will be performing at the Rutgers Internal Student Association’s Colors of Nations show, along with an array of other performances by Rutgers-based cultural organizations..

The event is scheduled for 8pm on October 11 in the multi-purpose room of the Busch Campus Center on Bartholemew Road in Piscataway.

The Chinese Dance Troupe will be performing their Parasol dance which was choreographed by Elizabeth Tan and will be performed to the song “Snow like Hair” by Jay Chou.

The Colors of Nation dance will feature five of the team’s dancers including Audrey Dong, Leanna Bernstein, Catherine Rong, Nicole Yip, and Janel Borden.

Each fall the team goes to New York City where they visit a professional dance company to help learn new skills and improve their dancing.

Unlike other Rutgers dance teams, the Chinese Dance Troupe is unique due to their willingness to take in anyone who expresses an interest to dance with absolutely no audition requirement.

This means that the team is a a good mix of dancers ranging from novices to the professionally-trained, and provides opportunities for all involved to improve their skills.

As performance coordinator Shuang Cheng said, “Helping others even helps us dancers to improve!”