Annie originally trained as a classical Chinese dancer from the age of ten before moving on to train in contemporary ballet. She subsequently attended Beijing Dance Academy and graduated with a BA in Musical Theatre Performance.
She first came to 樱桃视频 in 2004 to study for her MA as a producer in musical theatre. In 2008 she completed a course in Business Financial Forecasting and Marketing at the London Business Study Centre.
Her vision is to create a bridge between Eastern and Western culture, especially between China and the UK, particularly looking at the cross-cultural exchange of education, performing arts, history, customs and other social and cultural aspects.
Producer
As a producer, Annie has worked on numerous large-scale productions in both China and the UK, including roles as the Executive Producer / Artistic Director for the Cultures of China Festival of Spring. She has also worked with Cameron Mackintosh on the Chinese version of Les Miserables, acted as Associate Producer for Jeff Wayne鈥檚 The War of The Worlds and been Producer / Director of Qing Shan, a cross-cultural project in collaboration with the Arts Council.
Performer
Annie played the lead in both Tale of the White Snake and Legend of Yang GuiFei.
Writer
Previous works include Double Life, a musical about materialism, moral standards and social pressures for the new Chinese generation; Angling City, a musical adaptation of a little-known historical legend; Hey Youth, and The Graduate, which won the first prize at the Chinese National University Arts Festival and the Best Show prize at the University Performance Competition in Sichan Province, China.
Lecturer
Annie lectures on musical theatre at both BA and MA in 樱桃视频 as well as giving talks and workshops at a wide range of institutions and organisations, including the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts; Chongqing University in China; Twenty First Century Performing Arts Centre; Beijing Oriental Song Lei Musical Development Company; ISTD鈥檚 (Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing) Theatre Congress Showcase.
Li Ran graduated from Beijing Dance Academy and holds a Master of Arts degree in Chinese Folk Dance.
She has been engaged in administrative management and academic research at Beijing Dance Academy for 11 years, with her research focus on Chinese folk dance, dance education, dance training, and the promotion of aesthetic education. She once served as the Honorary Principal of the Honglian Campus for the "University Participation in Primary School Aesthetic Education Development" program in Beijing.
Dr. Frances Yiying Zhang is a scholar, teacher educator, and departmental academia convenor at Goldsmiths. She holds a Master鈥檚 degree from the Education University of Hong Kong.
With a wealth of experience, she has previously devoted six years to teaching Chinese language and literature in Hong Kong schools and achieved the award of Hong Kong Top Excellent Teachers in 2019.
She further enriched her educational background with a PhD in Education from the University of Exeter, with a special focus on language teacher education.
With a profound interest in teacher education, Chinese applied linguistics, second language teaching, and Chinese studies, Dr. Zhang鈥檚 research endeavours contribute to the advancement of these fields.
Teaching
Mandarin Chinese
Contemporary Chinese issues
Chinese Philosophy-Confucianism and Taoism
Chinese Philosophy-Legalism, Mohism and Buddhism
Chinese Culture and Arts of Contemporary China
History of Contemporary China
Exploring Higher Education and Cultural Diversification
Thinking Higher Education and Cultural Transcendence
Yiyang Xue is a postgraduate dance teacher from Beijing Dance Academy. He possesses a diverse educational background, with particular theoretical and practical experience in cross-cultural dance studies.
He aims to showcase traditional Chinese culture through richer artistic forms and strives to integrate culturally distinct elements鈥攕uch as Chinese classical dance, traditional folk dance, Tai Chi, and calligraphy鈥攚ith modern dance.
Additionally, he has participated in multiple cultural and artistic exchanges in countries such as Thailand, Egypt, and Spain. He warmly welcomes opportunities for collaboration and mutual learning with individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds.
Bo Wang is an artist-educator holding dual Master鈥檚 degrees in Musicology and Solo Vocal Performance. His professional practice is shaped by his formative years as a choral scholar at the Choir of King鈥檚 College, Cambridge.
Currently serving as Associate Chorus Director, London Philharmonic Choir (LPC), Bo brings extensive ensemble leadership and professional performance experience to his teaching.
At the Confucius Institute at 樱桃视频, Bo bridges Eastern and Western vocal traditions by integrating narrative-based movement and vocal pedagogy, helping students enhance their tonal sensitivity and expressive depth. He is currently developing interdisciplinary performance workshops that connect vocal training with stage practice, supporting the development of intercultural vocal performance.
My name is Minlu Liu, a Master's graduate from the Beijing Dance Academy, China.
With over five years of professional experience in Chinese Classical and Folk Dance, my practice is deeply rooted in the principle of "the unity of form and spirit." My classes offer a rigorous yet joyful exploration of dance, where I break down complex techniques and weave in cultural context to help you not just learn movements, but truly understand the art. I look forward to guiding you to experience the elegance of Chinese culture and the freedom of expression through dance.
Taoing Hu is a postgraduate dance teacher graduated from Beijing Dance Academy. She has a multi-layered academic background, including secondary vocational education in early childhood education, college diploma in music education and bachelor鈥檚 degree.
Her research focuses on folk dance teaching and stylistic schools of folk dance performers.
Guided by the educational philosophy of education for all and teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, she attaches great importance to students鈥� self-discovery, self-expression and self-development. She excels at exploring students鈥� physical performance potential and stimulating their creativity.
She hopes to spread Chinese folk dance culture, promote the artistic spirit of the Chinese nation, and facilitate the integration and harmonious development of global cultures through international teaching and cultural exchanges.
Yuanyuan Yang is a postgraduate student in Art Studies at Beijing Dance Academy, with a background in Chinese classical dance performance and education. Her research focuses on dance aesthetics and aesthetic education through dance.
Her papers have been published in China, and her research has won an award at an international dance festival.
She teaches Chinese classical dance and Chinese ethnic and folk dance. She has taught dance in primary and secondary schools and training centres in Beijing and Chengdu, and has designed and delivered an original dance teaching module at university level, turning traditional dance culture into practical, accessible lessons.
She hopes that everyone, whatever their background, can enjoy Chinese dance and understand the culture behind it.
My name is Zhang Kuaixue. I completed a seven-year ballet performance program at Guangzhou Art School for my secondary training. I hold my bachelor鈥檚 degree in Choreography from Beijing Dance Academy, and now I鈥檓 a postgraduate student majoring in Dance History and Culture at BDA.
As a dance educator, I focus on the comparison and integration of Chinese and Western dance cultures. My classes are professional yet elaborately explained. Built on solid ballet training, I also incorporate Chinese dance history and traditional aesthetics. I break down technical and theoretical knowledge step by step. I help students explore the cultural meaning behind movements, and develop a comprehensive understanding of dance through contrasting Eastern and Western dance systems.
My name is Xinyan Huang, an undergraduate student majoring in Dance Education from the Beijing Dance Academy, China.
With solid professional training in Chinese Classical Dance and Chinese Folk Dance, my practice is deeply rooted in the principle of "the unity of form and spirit." My classes offer a rigorous yet joyful exploration of dance, where I break down complex techniques and weave in cultural context to help you not just learn movements, but truly understand the art. I look forward to guiding you to experience the elegance of Chinese culture and the freedom of expression through dance.
Siyi Liao has over ten years of experience playing the guzheng and holds a Level 10 Certificate in Guzheng Performance.
She is passionate about introducing students to the beauty and cultural richness of traditional Chinese music. In her teaching, she helps students quickly develop foundational guzheng skills while encouraging them to appreciate the instrument as a meaningful form of self-expression, comfort, and emotional well-being.
Dr Junhong Li is an associate professor from Capital Normal University. She graduated from Beijing Normal University with a major in Chinese Character Studies.
She has won the honorary title of "Outstanding Lecturer" at Capital Normal University on multiple occasions and delivered lectures or trained local Chinese language teachers in the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Italy, the United States and other countries.
She has published multiple works. Among these, Approaching Chinese Characters won the First Prize of Excellent Teaching Materials in the 3rd China University Press Book Award.
She is on secondment from North University of China in Taiyuan, where she was awarded as a college-level demonstration lecturer in 2025. She mainly researches on multimodality in TEOSL and TCOSL classrooms and did her research at the School of Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) from 2018 to 2019 as a visiting scholar.
Currently, she serves as our Mandarin lecturer, responsible for teaching short courses and managing the International Mandarin Proficiency Examination (HSK) Testing Centre.
Chengyi Song,a postgraduate student in International Chinese Language Education at Central China Normal University. She holds an International Chinese Language Teacher Certificate and has gained valuable teaching experience as a volunteer Chinese language teacher in Indonesia.
Her teaching experience has enabled her to work with learners from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds and to develop a flexible, student-centred approach to Chinese language teaching. She is passionate about creating engaging and supportive learning environments that encourage students to explore the Chinese language with confidence and curiosity.
Beyond language teaching, Chengyi is also enthusiastic about introducing Chinese culture through creative and hands-on activities. She has skills in traditional Chinese arts and crafts, including Chinese knotting and paper cutting, which she incorporates into cultural activities to help students experience Chinese culture in an enjoyable and accessible way. She hopes to connect language learning with cultural understanding, and to inspire students to discover the richness and diversity of Chinese language and culture.
Ms Hongyu Luo graduated from Beijing Language and Culture University with a Master's degree in International Chinese Language Education. Her main research focus is multimodal teaching.
She has taught Chinese to university students from US,UK,Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Mongolia, Turkmenistan, France, Spain, Russia, the UAE, Japan and other countries.
She has published research on multimodal Chinese teaching, including a multimodal discourse analysis of beginner-level Chinese speaking MOOCs. She contributed to the compilation of the New Standard Chinese textbook series, and was awarded the National Scholarship in 2025.
She is also skilled in Chinese knotting, paper-cutting and calligraphy, and enjoys bringing cultural activities into the language classroom.
Jiaqi is from Kunming University of Science and Technology, where she majors in International Chinese Education. Currently, she teaches Conversational Mandarin Chinese and Advanced Chinese.
Jiaqi is passionate about making Chinese learning engaging, and she often integrates small cultural elements into classes to help students understand not just the language, but also the stories behind it.
Tang Pingping, a graduate student at Minzu University, majored in TCSOL for both her bachelor's and master's degrees, with research focus on cross-cultural communication and exchange.
She has served as a teaching assistant for international students at the School of Education at Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and has the ability to conduct high-quality Chinese teaching activities and assist in teaching.
Dr Jin Xie is an is an assistant professor from Taizhou University. She obtained a PhD from Beijing Sports University and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Georgia.
Jin Xie has been teaching martial arts course for international students in Taizhou University since 2008. She was awarded the title of Outstanding Teacher and Advanced Teacher. Jin Xie currently works as an Martial Arts teacher at Goldsmiths Confucius Institute. She lectures in traditional Chinese Kung Fu, Tai Chi and Qigong.
She is on secondment from North University of China in Taiyuan, where she was awarded as a college-level demonstration lecturer in 2025. She mainly researches on multimodality in TEOSL and TCOSL classrooms and did her research at the School of Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) from 2018 to 2019 as a visiting scholar.
Currently, she serves as our Mandarin lecturer, responsible for teaching short courses and managing the International Mandarin Proficiency Examination (HSK) Testing Centre.
Zihan is a Mandarin teacher with the department on secondment from Communication University of China (CUC),majored in Teaching Chinese to Speakers of Other Languages (TCSOL).
In her teaching, she emphasizes cultural comparison between China and UK, integrating contemporary topics from modern China to make learning both relevant and engaging.
She is also skilled in traditional Chinese arts such as paper cutting, calligraphy, and tea ceremony, which she incorporates into her classes to enrich students鈥� understanding of Chinese language and culture.
