Dance finds a digital stage

At the Guangzhou Song and Dance Theater's group livestreaming studio, 22-year-old dancer Qiang Yiting takes center position in a performance of Odes to Heroes.

Unlike on a traditional stage, where performers move across a wide space and audiences take in the overall choreography, she must constantly be aware of the camera, making sure her movements stay within the frame of a vertical smartphone screen.

Viewers on the other side of the screen can swipe away at any moment or react through real-time comments. Performers no longer have to wait until the final curtain call to receive feedback.

This is now part of Qiang's daily routine. From Monday to Saturday, Qiang and her fellow dancers take turns performing in livestreams lasting about six hours, featuring group dances, solo performances, improvisations and excerpts from classic dance dramas.

Many viewers have likened the format to "a mini concert", praising its lively atmosphere and variety of performances.

Qiang's experience is part of a broader shift across China's performing arts industry, as professional troupes explore how to adapt established stage productions for audiences accustomed to watching entertainment on their phones.

On June 25, Chinese short-video platform Douyin and the China Association of Performing Arts jointly launched an initiative encouraging professional performing arts troupes to bring classic stage productions to group livestreams. As of late June 2026, 57 State-owned performing arts troupes across China had launched regular group livestreams on Douyin, collectively staging more than 16,000 livestreams and attracting a cumulative audience of 320 million.

Odes to Heroes is one of the most popular performances by the Guangzhou Song and Dance Theater's group livestreaming studio, adapted from a dance drama of the same name staged by the theater. Inspired by Yingge dance, a national intangible cultural heritage tradition from Guangdong's Chaoshan region, the production combines elements of traditional dance, martial arts and theater.

Bringing such a traditional art form to smartphone audiences has been a new challenge for Qiang, who entered the livestreaming industry only a few months ago.

A new language

Qiang, who comes from Chongqing, joined the theater's livestreaming center in March and started performing online in July.

It is her first job.

A graduate of the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangdong province, where she majored in dance studies with a focus on dance theory, Qiang initially knew little about group livestreaming.

Having spent much of her time in theaters and rehearsal studios, she initially associated it with online entertainment shows and virtual tipping. She even worried that the format might diminish the artistic value of dance.

But as she learned more, she realized that professional performing arts troupes were not simply turning dancers into online influencers. Instead, they were experimenting with a new medium for presenting professional dance.

Once she stepped in front of the camera, Qiang discovered how much she still had to learn.

"We're not just performing differently — we also have to think differently about how the audience sees us," she said.

In a theater, for example, audiences can take in the entire stage and the atmosphere of a production, while dancers focus on body lines, fluid movements and artistic expression. Livestream viewers, however, are accustomed to the fast pace of short videos, meaning performers must capture their attention much more quickly.

In the past three months, Qiang has learned to place greater emphasis on striking poses and subtle facial expressions. To make her expressions stand out in close-ups, she also darkens her eyebrows and sharpens her gaze.

When performing a water-sleeve dance, for example, she not only pays attention to the flowing lines created by the sweeping sleeves but also uses brief pauses between movements to look directly into the camera, creating a closer connection with viewers.

The interaction also allows audiences to play a role in shaping the performances they see.

Qiang recalled how viewers sometimes suggested ways to improve certain poses in the comments or expressed a preference for fast-paced sword dances and displays of technical skill.

The team collects and reviews the feedback and uses it to refine subsequent performances. It also sometimes creates short dance pieces around particular themes or musical selections, making them easier for online audiences to follow.

Learning to respond to viewers has changed not only how Qiang performs, but also how she thinks about her future. She is now learning about choreography, production, operations, lighting and camera work to better understand how a group livestream comes together, from the initial concept to the final performance.

She hopes to become a versatile dancer who understands both the art of dance and digital communication.

Beyond the stage

The theater's experiment with group livestreaming has already drawn a sizable online audience.

On Aug 5, it presented condensed and adapted excerpts from its classic dance dramas in a livestream. The broadcast attracted a total of more than 3.84 million views.

According to Xia Tian, general manager of the theater's livestreaming center, preparations for the center began in 2025, and it started broadcasting that December.

The theater works with a specialized digital media operations company, whose team handles technical support, content planning, choreography and day-to-day operations.

Xia previously worked in the commercial group livestreaming industry. In his view, professional performing arts troupes have two major strengths: their dancers' solid technical training and their extensive repertoires.

"Some commercial group livestreams rely mainly on competitions between livestreamers and virtual gifts to attract attention. As a professional troupe, we want the performance itself to keep people watching," he said.

Professional dancers can also improvise in response to viewers' requests, a practice that requires both strong technical skills and an understanding of how online audiences communicate.

But professionalism does not necessarily translate into online traffic.

"One of our biggest challenges is balancing artistic quality with what works on the platform," Xia said. "Sometimes we put a lot of thought into choreographing a performance, but it still doesn't get the exposure we expect."

That challenge has pushed the theater to explore ways of reaching audiences beyond those already familiar with professional dance. One approach has been to collaborate with online influencers, hoping to introduce the art form to people who might otherwise never encounter such performances while scrolling through their phones.

For Xia, that effort is also a form of cultural outreach.

"I remember when I was young, performing arts troupes would travel to rural areas to bring performances to people who had limited access to them," he said. "Today, young people increasingly turn to their phones for cultural content, so again, we have to go where the audience is."

"We used to talk about 'bringing culture to the countryside'. To me, group livestreaming is that same idea in the digital age," Xia added.

guiqian@i21st.cn