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Slinky dancin' grandmas got talent
By Wing Tan |
June 6, 2011, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE dancing queens of "China's Got Talent" are nine hot grannies and aunties who wear low-cut glittering tops, miniskirts, tights and high heels. Wing Tan talks to the gals from Fengxian District.
These grandmas are hot. Seen from the back, they are often mistaken for curvy young women. Wearing miniskirts, low-cut tops, bling and high heels, they recently stole the show on "China's Got Talent," a popular TV show.
The nine nimble oldsters in shockingly good shape perform to a remix of Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley. They swivel their hips and execute fast steps, hops, jumps and acrobatic moves that would be daunting to many younger women.
We're still young at heart - don't dismiss old grannies, they say with big smiles after their performance on May 29.
They call their dance group Village 456 - because they are all in their 40s, 50s and 60s. The oldest is 64 years old and the youngest is 42. The average age is 53.
They include a nurse, kindergarten teacher, librarian, housewives and civil servants.
"Since we were young, we all loved to dance, but we didn't have a chance to show it. Now it's time for us to catch the tail-end of youth," says Quan Wei, the eldest or "big sister," with a hearty laugh.
In her youth during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76) she was sent to remote Daxing'anling Forest in Heilongjiang Province in the far northeast. She says that's where she spent her best years.
"Frankly, even though we're not young, we all still want to look good and pretty," says the 53-year-old librarian Li Zonglin. "It feels so good to show off. If we don't do it now, then when could we do it?"
Ten years ago, the nine women met at the Fengxian District cultural center and hit it off. They set up a dance group, found a teacher and started dancing.
"We were quite serious. It's not just a way to pass time, it's our common pursuit," says the youngest, 42-year-old Zhang Ling. "We want to be the professionals among amateurs."
Each of them is a dance and fitness fanatic. They say they are doing steps, moves and exercising every day from the moment they get up in the morning till the time they go to sleep at night.
"If you really love it, you can always find time to do it," says Zeng Xiangling, 59, a retired kindergarten teacher. "We all learn how to balance and mix dancing and the chores in our daily life."
Zhang Ling stands on her toes while washing dishes; 50-year-old Qian Jianqin stretches her leg muscles while mopping the floor; 49-year-old Mao Jianqing does squats or push-ups while watching TV; 49-year-old nurse Zheng Ping stretches her hamstrings by extending her legs on the bamboo pole for laundry on the balcony.
"We seldom stop these little exercises, we want to stay in good physical shape," says the second eldest dancer Zhuang Jie, 62.
Seen from the back, they are often mistaken for young women because of their slender figures and curves.
Bruises and sprains are no big deal, they come with the territory.
The dancers earned their reputation in the district long before they appeared on "China's Got Talent."
On holidays, festivals and special occasions, they are the dancing queens. They also dance for orphans, residents of old folks' homes and for farmers in remote villages.
Some places are so poor that they have no stage, lights or music.
"We sang and danced on the ground at the entrance to the village. They were so happy," recalls Zhang Ling. "Some old villagers laughed aloud and I saw their toothless mouths. If they are happy, we are happy too."
They rehearse together at least twice a week and before a performance they practice every day.
Early this year, Zhang the youngest heard "China's Got Talent" was recruiting. She filled out the application for the group without asking anyone.
"I knew they might not agree, so I did it in advance so they couldn't back out," she says. "Actually, we didn't have that much confidence, but Ling Ling (Zhang's nickname) was right. Why not give it a try?" Mao says.
Then they dedicated all their time and energy to practice. They worried at first that their families would object but to their surprise, they all got a lot of support from their children and husbands.
"The costume we were going to wear was a little too much, too sexy. I was quite worried people might think it inappropriate," Quan says.
The costume was a low-cut, skintight T-shirt covered with shiny blue sequins, plus a short, tight skirt and black leggings.
The 64-year-old granny took it home, modeled it for her husband and asked his advice.
"Not bad, my wife is hotter than I thought," Quan recalls laughing.
That show was a huge success. They advanced to the next round.
The performance wasn't perfect because at the very end Quan slipped and fell.
"The floor was slippery. I quickly stood up and pretended nothing had happened," she says. "If we failed, I would blame myself."
After the program was broadcast, they had lots of fans.
"My husband told me not to smile too hard, because that would make my teeth look bigger on TV," Zhang says.
Qian's 26-year-old daughter uploaded the video clip to the Internet, which won them millions of fans - and some jeerers.
"We don't care that much because we know we're doing what we truly love," says Mao.
"Just give us music and we will dance on till the day we can't dance anymore."
These grandmas are hot. Seen from the back, they are often mistaken for curvy young women. Wearing miniskirts, low-cut tops, bling and high heels, they recently stole the show on "China's Got Talent," a popular TV show.
The nine nimble oldsters in shockingly good shape perform to a remix of Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley. They swivel their hips and execute fast steps, hops, jumps and acrobatic moves that would be daunting to many younger women.
We're still young at heart - don't dismiss old grannies, they say with big smiles after their performance on May 29.
They call their dance group Village 456 - because they are all in their 40s, 50s and 60s. The oldest is 64 years old and the youngest is 42. The average age is 53.
They include a nurse, kindergarten teacher, librarian, housewives and civil servants.
"Since we were young, we all loved to dance, but we didn't have a chance to show it. Now it's time for us to catch the tail-end of youth," says Quan Wei, the eldest or "big sister," with a hearty laugh.
In her youth during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76) she was sent to remote Daxing'anling Forest in Heilongjiang Province in the far northeast. She says that's where she spent her best years.
"Frankly, even though we're not young, we all still want to look good and pretty," says the 53-year-old librarian Li Zonglin. "It feels so good to show off. If we don't do it now, then when could we do it?"
Ten years ago, the nine women met at the Fengxian District cultural center and hit it off. They set up a dance group, found a teacher and started dancing.
"We were quite serious. It's not just a way to pass time, it's our common pursuit," says the youngest, 42-year-old Zhang Ling. "We want to be the professionals among amateurs."
Each of them is a dance and fitness fanatic. They say they are doing steps, moves and exercising every day from the moment they get up in the morning till the time they go to sleep at night.
"If you really love it, you can always find time to do it," says Zeng Xiangling, 59, a retired kindergarten teacher. "We all learn how to balance and mix dancing and the chores in our daily life."
Zhang Ling stands on her toes while washing dishes; 50-year-old Qian Jianqin stretches her leg muscles while mopping the floor; 49-year-old Mao Jianqing does squats or push-ups while watching TV; 49-year-old nurse Zheng Ping stretches her hamstrings by extending her legs on the bamboo pole for laundry on the balcony.
"We seldom stop these little exercises, we want to stay in good physical shape," says the second eldest dancer Zhuang Jie, 62.
Seen from the back, they are often mistaken for young women because of their slender figures and curves.
Bruises and sprains are no big deal, they come with the territory.
The dancers earned their reputation in the district long before they appeared on "China's Got Talent."
On holidays, festivals and special occasions, they are the dancing queens. They also dance for orphans, residents of old folks' homes and for farmers in remote villages.
Some places are so poor that they have no stage, lights or music.
"We sang and danced on the ground at the entrance to the village. They were so happy," recalls Zhang Ling. "Some old villagers laughed aloud and I saw their toothless mouths. If they are happy, we are happy too."
They rehearse together at least twice a week and before a performance they practice every day.
Early this year, Zhang the youngest heard "China's Got Talent" was recruiting. She filled out the application for the group without asking anyone.
"I knew they might not agree, so I did it in advance so they couldn't back out," she says. "Actually, we didn't have that much confidence, but Ling Ling (Zhang's nickname) was right. Why not give it a try?" Mao says.
Then they dedicated all their time and energy to practice. They worried at first that their families would object but to their surprise, they all got a lot of support from their children and husbands.
"The costume we were going to wear was a little too much, too sexy. I was quite worried people might think it inappropriate," Quan says.
The costume was a low-cut, skintight T-shirt covered with shiny blue sequins, plus a short, tight skirt and black leggings.
The 64-year-old granny took it home, modeled it for her husband and asked his advice.
"Not bad, my wife is hotter than I thought," Quan recalls laughing.
That show was a huge success. They advanced to the next round.
The performance wasn't perfect because at the very end Quan slipped and fell.
"The floor was slippery. I quickly stood up and pretended nothing had happened," she says. "If we failed, I would blame myself."
After the program was broadcast, they had lots of fans.
"My husband told me not to smile too hard, because that would make my teeth look bigger on TV," Zhang says.
Qian's 26-year-old daughter uploaded the video clip to the Internet, which won them millions of fans - and some jeerers.
"We don't care that much because we know we're doing what we truly love," says Mao.
"Just give us music and we will dance on till the day we can't dance anymore."
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