Chinese dancers find fitness and friendship at the park

In the mornings and evenings in Sunset Park, groups of 30 to 40 dancers line up on the lawns as traditional Chinese music plays from speakers. Around them, families picnic, children play basketball, people sing karaoke and kites cross the sky.

Most of the dancers are middle-aged and older Chinese women, though men also take part. They gather for hours of exercise and companionship, continuing a tradition that immigrants have carried forward in the park for decades.

Hanguan Liu, 71, moved from Hong Kong and has lived in Sunset Park since 1984. He has danced in the park for more than a decade.

“We’re together every day,” Liu said. “We’ve all become friends.”

Liu said the dancers range from their 40s to their 60s. Many are retired, though some still work, and most have families. While the adults dance, children often play in the nearby playground.

Wei Chen, one of the leaders who guides her group from the front, described a common routine among retired women: “They come out in the morning — after having breakfast — to get some exercise, and then head back home to do housework. And in the evening, they come out again after finishing the housework and cooking dinner.”

Even the leaders learn the dances on their own. Chen said participants use the Tangdou Square Dance app, where instructors show routines from the front and back and explain the movements.

“We learned from them and mastered the routines so we could all learn and dance together,” she said.

The dances vary in intensity, allowing people with different physical abilities to take part. Chen said some routines are vigorous, others moderate and some softer and more fluid. Participants choose the routines they enjoy and can perform comfortably; older dancers and people with leg or joint problems can skip the more intense movements.

Chen said the tradition in Sunset Park stretches back more than 50 years. Some of the earlier dancers were in their 80s or 90s before they stopped coming to the park, and younger dancers learned from them.

“As one group retired, another took over,” Chen said. “For new immigrants who have worked hard and struggled their whole lives, now that they’re retired, they look for hobbies — like coming here to dance and pass the time.”

Most morning and evening gatherings are practices rather than public performances. “We don’t have stage performances, just practices,” Chen said.

Some groups, however, rehearse for special events. A younger group called the Happy Sisters of Sunset Park (日落公园快乐姐妹) is preparing for a Mid-Autumn Festival performance expected to take place in Sunset Park. The festival falls on September 25, 2026, and is associated with mooncakes, lanterns and social gatherings. A time and exact location for the performance have not yet been confirmed.

Wei Chen said Lina Chen, president of the Health Essential Association, helps organize practices and performances. “She’s quite active in the community,” Wei Chen said. “She’s the one who organizes things and gets people together.”

The group welcomes dancers across age groups. “We welcome everyone — whether they’re middle-aged or elderly,” Wei Chen said. “There’s no distinction made between young and old. We’re all sisters here.”