NATIONAL DANCE: Students from Qingdao No.39 Middle School perform the dance Red is Red, Green is Green (YE JIN)

However, the classical dances brought about by Taiwan young dancers were well received by mainland audiences, such as the dance Warriors, a classical dance designed to reflect adventurous warriors' chivalry in ancient China.

Cui Bingyuan, choreographer and Art Director of Taoyuan Leading Dance Troupe, said Warriors originally told stories about male warriors, but because of a lack of male dancers, girls had been trained to show masculine power and strength through acrobatic fighting in the spear dance. Warriors is a typical example of the popular form of Chinese classical dance in Taiwan, which makes full use of stage properties as well as opera and acrobatic techniques.

But both Zhang and Cui hold modern dance in Taiwan is strong. Two modern dances presented in Qingdao this time are designed to show fierce social competition in modern cities, and the varied impact of the quick pace of life on people's psychology.

Tangyi's dance Ju (means the situation on the chessboard) puts forward the idea no one knows what will follow after a decision to move a piece. Even if you win on this move, you might lose everything with the next.

Taoyuan Leading Dance Troupe's dance What reveals the tense and torn inner world of white- collar workers. The dancers' quick moves: full turns, half turns, body twists and rolling on the stage imply in modern society everyone has to work and fight fiercely to compete for limited social space needed for development and survival.

In modern dance, students are free to fully express their own understanding, Zhang said.

"Taiwan dancers are more flexible and creative in performance, eager to show their individual personalities," said Wei Qing, a student from Qingdao Preschool Teachers' School.

Besides, they have been all well grounded in basic skills, such as splits, somersaults and rolling quickly, which means putting together a dance program in a limited time is not a big problem for them, she noted.

Friendship endures

At a welcome party on July 25, Taiwan dancers' strong dance skills—swaying, bouncing, bending and stretching—in exciting modern dance triggered loud applause from mainland audiences. Dancers from schools in Qingdao also presented excellent programs to welcome their Taiwan friends.

Apart from dance performances and exchanges, students from across the Straits had many other opportunities to talk and exchange various experiences. While giving gifts such as moth orchid, a famous plant in Taiwan, to local students, the Taiwanese dancers also received special local products such as sorghum candies. Back stage, making use of the gaps between the two programs, they wrote down each other's MSN and e-mail addresses for further communication in the future.