Fan dance

In the West, a fan dance (i.e. a dance performed with one or more fans), may be an erotic dance performance, traditionally by a woman. The performer, either entirely nude or apparently so, dances while manipulating two large fans, typically constructed from ostrich feathers.

In the UK, the fan dance has been used in the finals of the Miss Nude UK 2000 competition and in The Windmill in Soho where it replaced the tradition of nude tableaux and has since been replaced by table dancing.

In an episode of the Australian TV series Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries set in the 1930s the protagonist, private detective Phryne Fisher, goes undercover as a fan dancer in a gentleman's club (Series 2, Episode 1 "Murder Most Scandalous").

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Fan dance (exercise)

The Fan Dance is part of the Fitness and Navigation phase of the selection process of the UK's Special Forces personnel. It has also been used on courses run by the Pathfinder Group, the RAF regiment II Parachute Squadron and the Infantry Battle School, Brecon, Wales. It is a 24 kilometre long distance march in the Brecon Beacons of Wales that takes place at the end of the first week of the selection course. It is used as the first major indicator of whether a candidate has the physical and mental determination to complete the selection course.

The candidates are divided into two groups and each starts from opposite sides of Pen y Fan, an 886 metre high peak. One group starts at Torpantau railway station, the other at the Storey Arms Mountain Rescue Centre. Each participant carries an 22.22 kilogram Bergen backpack, a rifle (a further 2.97 kg), food and 4 one litre water bottles (an extra 5kgs). The candidates climb Pen y Fan and descend on the far side, they then turn around and reverse the route. They are given 4 hours 10 minutes to complete the speed march. Although they start off in a group, it is an individual best effort. The Fan Dance is distinct from the Long Drag, a 64 km march with a 25 kg backpack that is the culminating event of the Fitness and Navigation phase of the selection course.

Buchaechum

Buchaechum is a traditional form of Korean dance also called a fan dance, usually performed by groups of female dancers.

Performances

Many Koreans use this dance during many celebrations. Dancers use large fans painted with pink peony blossoms and display a show of dance. In the dance being performed, the dancers represent shaped images using the fans e.g. birds, flowers, butterflies and waves.

They wear brightly coloured hanboks, the Korean traditional dress.

History

Buchaechum appears to have developed under influence of both Korean shamanic dance and traditional Joseon Dynasty court performance.

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