Bovard Auditorium’s stage was filled with soft, instrumental music as talented dancers flew across the floor in billowing gowns and magnificent colors Sunday night. Every piece was a story, and every story was told through the language of traditional Chinese dance. 

USC Traditional Chinese Dance presented its annual performance, one of the only on-campus performances the club puts on every year and the only chance the USC community can see the club’s hard work. This year marks the 20th anniversary of TCD, and Sunday night featured a special performance by TCD alumni. 

The showcase, titled “Ephemeral,” was split into two parts, first featuring the dancers’ technical skills, and then delving into a dramatic story. The technical part showcased individual dances choreographed by a diverse array of students with individual themes, costumes and storylines. There was also a brief demonstration of martial arts by USC Kung Fu at USC. 

Anna Tung, a PhD student in biomedical engineering, performed at the showcase dancing a plethora of different styles: Mongolian, Tang Dynasty, dai and kung fu. 

“I love it because we can try out a lot of types of different Chinese dance,” Tung said. “We can learn from each other even though we don’t technically have a dance teacher … because everyone has different dance backgrounds.”

The second half of the showcase was the drama. There were still gorgeous dances, unique and stunning costumes, and beautiful music; however, they were all connected in a multi-part story. 

The dancers told the origin story of the Mid-Autumn Festival, or the Moon Festival. The fable details the life of a woman named Chang’e who marries a man named Hou Yi, a hero who saved the world. In order to protect her husband, Chang’e  drinks an elixir of immortality. She ascends to heaven and lives on the moon, forever forced to live away from her husband. 

“There’s really no reunification between the two lovers,” said Kylie Meng-Lin, the director of internal relations for TCD and a senior majoring in neuroscience. “We named this drama and the overall showcase ‘Ephemeral’ to be able to capture that sense of longing for your lover but also that sense of separation where even though they’re not reunified [and] there’s still distance in between them, they still love each other.”

History has told and retold plenty of versions of this story across the world. Serena Li, a junior majoring in computer science who was in the audience Sunday night, heard a completely different version of the story where Chang’e didn’t even have Hou Yi as a husband.

“It’s really interesting to see how there are different versions of folklores,” Li said. “It shows that different ways of telling a story can give different perspectives.”

From this story came the Mid-Autumn Festival, a time where Chinese families sit under the moon and celebrate being together. Among the families being honored and celebrated Sunday night, it was easy to tell that the family that the dancers in TCD have created was the most important. 

“I really want our dancers to feel like, you know, they played an integral part in each of the dances … and come out of it feeling proud of themselves,” Meng-Lin said. “I want them to feel proud in their abilities and feel confident and be inspired to continue growing as dancers.”

The night became even more special with TCD’s alumni performance. At the beginning of the first act, six previous members of TCD from all over came back to choreograph and perform on stage. 

To pull off a two-hour long performance, the members of TCD poured a staggering amount of time, work and commitment into the production. All that work has fostered true friendships between the dancers — the types of friendships that build a strong community, Meng-Lin said.

“The friendships that I’ve been able to gain in TCD have made me feel a sense of safety within USC, especially since I’m out-of-state,” Meng-Lin said. “It’s really become a home and a family for me after four years. Just being able to add new members to that little family has been really exciting.”

Meng-Lin emphasized the importance of Chinese representation beyond media stereotypes or politics. 

“I would really love our audience to be able to take away just a piece of Chinese culture,” Meng-Lin said. “I feel like I just want people to be able to step away from the stereotypes and actually see the beauty.”