Xueting Zhu is a dancer, choreographer, and PhD candidate in Dance Studies at The Ohio State University. Her research focuses on competitive ballroom dance/DanceSport in China through transnational and transcultural lenses, engaging critical cultural studies, dance and performance studies, gender and sexuality studies, and Chinese studies. She holds a BFA and MFA from Shanghai University of Sport and was a visiting scholar at UC Irvine. As a dancer, she has trained with internationally recognized coaches and competitors, including winners and finalists of the Blackpool Dance Festival, the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) World Championship, and the 2010 Asian Games. She has achieved notable results in DanceSport competitions in China, and her performances appeared on China Central Television (CCTV), the Shanghai International Dance Center, the Shanghai Spring International Music Festival, etc. She has presented her scholarly work at conferences including the Dance Studies Association (DSA), the Association for Asian Performance (AAP), and the American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA). Her publications have appeared in both Chinese- and English-language journals, such as Theatre Journal, Dance (舞蹈), and Shanghai Art Review (上海艺术评论). Certified as a teacher and adjudicator by the Chinese DanceSport Federation (CDSF), she is also an active committee member of the China University DanceSport Association (CUDSA) at the Federation of Chinese University and School Sports (FOCUSS).

Currently, she is collaborating with colleagues in Shanghai on research projects including “The Dual Evolution of Competitive and Artistic Elements within DanceSport in China” (中国体育舞蹈竞技性与艺术性双向发展研究) and “A Study on Dance Drama Adaptations of Classic Drama IP” (经典戏剧IP的舞剧改编研究), supported by the Shanghai Education Development Foundation, the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, and other institutions. Her collaborative dance theater Intimate Relations (亲密关系), co-created with artists based in Shanghai and San Diego, will premiere in October 2026 at the Shanghai Theatre Academy as an invited project of the China Shanghai International Arts Festival’s R.A.W.! (Rising Artists’ Works) program.