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Jasmine Attends City of Raytown's Yearly Senior Event

On July 20th, the Raytown Chamber of Commerce held its yearly Senior Celebration which celebrates the community seniors (55+). The theme for this year was the Year of the Dragon, so they invited Jasmine to perform.



The Raytown Chamber of Commerce did a wonderful job decorating for the event and had lots of fun activities planned for the seniors. They took great care of Jasmine dancers by offering a delicious Chinese food dinner, and they even reserved a table for them. Jasmine performed a total of nine dances at the event, and each one was met with cheers from the crowd. Jasmine's host for this event was Daphne Valenta, from the oldest class, and she did a great job.


The first performance was a Ribbon Dance performed by Sarah and Julia. They used their brightly colored ribbons to gracefully perform this dance. This type of ribbon dance originates from the Han Dynasty and is a classical Chinese dance.


Ribbon Dance by Sarah and Julia


The next performance was called Like a Dream and involves a traditional Chinese Umbrella. Tiffany did a wonderful job transporting us into a dreamlike realm with her delicate movements. She painted a vivid picture of a girl's tranquil dream beside a serene lake adorned with blooming lotus flowers amidst a stormy afternoon.


Like a Dream by Tiffany


Next was a performance by Chanel called Drunken Spring Breeze. Her performance was very elegant and the crowd enjoyed it very much. This traditional Chinese fan dance beautifully captures the essence of spring, as a young girl revels in the delights of cherry blossoms and spring breezes all around her.


Drunken Spring Breeze by Chanel


Next was a traditional Dai dance called Dancing Peacock performed by Daphne. Peacock style dances are very popular among the Dai ethnic group and are very iconic dances.


Dancing Peacock by Daphne


Fans are often used in Chinese dances, but there are many types. Along with folding fans, round fans and cattail fans are often used. Evelyn performed a Chinese classical dance featuring a round fan called Indulged in the Blue Ripples.


Indulged in the Blue Ripples by Evelyn


The next dance imagines spring rain quietly falling upon an idyll village, silently nourishing everything on Earth, stirring awake the village. The girls who are accustomed to the spring rain frolic playfully in the mountains wearing bamboo hats. However, today an they encounter an unexpected guest who forgot to bring an umbrella. The dance Sweet Rain perfectly captures this message.


Sweet Rain by Tiffany, Apollo, Sarah, Julia, and Yilia


The next dance was a contemporary dance by Chanel that featured the Interstellar movie soundtrack. Although this was not a traditional Chinese dance, the crowd loved it just as much!


Interstellar by Chanel


The Jasmine flower is a famed flower in Chinese culture, and has been a symbol of purity, elegance, and an earthly detachment. The next dance called Jasmine utilized paper umbrellas with jasmine flower patterns to enhance the beauty of jasmine through an elegant dancing style.


Jasmine by Jinsong Zhang and Melody Yin


The last dance was a real hit with the crowd. It was another contemporary dance by three sisters, Chanel, Tiffany, and Victoria, called We Are Family. They pulled off incredible moves and really stunned the crowd.


We are Family by Chanel, Tiffany, and Victoria


The event was a great success for Jasmine and taught our crowd more about the richness of Chinese culture! Everyone had a great time and the City of Raytown did a great job organizing the event! Jasmine extends a thank you to the Raytown Chamber of Commerce for being amazing hosts and inviting Jasmine to perform at this wonderful event!



-Photos taken by Helen Zhang

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