Support Spokane Arts’ work to foster creativity & culture in our region for years to come by donating today! Your gift of any amount helps us continue impactful programs, public art projects, and direct granting to artists, arts organizations, & creative businesses! Learn more about all the ways to support here!

Grantee: Mary Zhang

Project Title: Mary’s Chinese Dance Studio
Year awarded: 2022, Round 1

Mary Zhang is the director of the Spokane Chinese Dance Group (SCDG) and the Vice President of the Spokane Chinese Association (SCA). Under her leadership, the SCDG was transformed from a loosely acquainted 5-member group into a quasi-professional team. As a pillar in the Spokane Chinese Association (SCA) and the broader Spokane community, the Spokane Chinese Dance Group plays a central role in art performance and entertainment, including during traditional Chinese holidays.

Under Zhang’s direction and instruction, the SCDG has staged more than 120 dances in the Great Spokane area. As the only group of artists in the Greater Spokane area to exhibit and promote cultural diversity through traditional Chinese dancing, the SCDG has performed a variety of different Chinese folk dances with artistic characteristics of specific ethnicities in Spokane libraries, schools, senior centers, and cultural hubs.

After years of practicing in donated spaces, SAGA will support Zhang as she establishes a home-based dance studio, allowing the Spokane Chinese Dance Group a permanent space to choreograph dances, train dancers, and continue to imbue the Spokane community with traditional Chinese dance performances, rich in style and elegance.