Harmless fun, or an antisocial activity?

Although the square dancing craze that's sweeping China has a huge number of devotees, it doesn't lack critics either. According to a recent survey by South Metropolitan Daily, nearly 85 percent of 1,467 respondents said square dancing is a regular activity in their communities, and 60.4 percent complained that the loud music played by the dancers disrupts their lives.

Confrontations between dancers and local residents have become regular fare in the media, which has reported on relatively peaceful demonstrations - such as groups blocking public squares with cars and chairs to prevent the dances going ahead - and more aggressive action such as people throwing sand, firecrackers, and even feces at the dancers. There have also been reports of people ordering large dogs, such as Tibetan mastiffs, to attack dancers.

To some people, it seems the only way to settle the dispute is to ban the dances from taking place in public spaces.

In attempts to improve relations with local residents, many dance groups have made conciliatory gestures. In May, Kong Zhengnian, the founder and head of a 300-member square dance group in Hefei, Anhui province, called on her fellow dancers to suspend their activities during the period of the high school and college entrance exams in June, a proposal that won warm support from all sides.

Kong's dancers have also pledged to finish their routines by 9 pm every evening to avoid interrupting their neighbors' sleep.

Meanwhile, some dance groups have been promoting "silent" square dances in which the participants listen to the music through wireless headphones. Although nearly 60 percent of the respondents to the South Metropolitan Daily's survey believed the silent dances were a laudable effort to promote good relations, some observers said the practice could be hard to promote.

"Most of the beginners will need instructions from either the group heads or from more-experienced dancers, and the headphones may make it hard to communicate." said Kong Xiangyu, who used to run a square dance group in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

Others expressed concerns that the headphones could affect the hearing of the participants, most of whom are middle-aged or elderly.

(China Daily 12/12/2014 page6)