Shanghai Dance Theater has showcased its new dance creation in a charity video clip featuring a dozen of its principal dancers.

The video clip was jointly produced by the Shanghai People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Shanghai Media Group.

Entitled "Fill the World with Love", the video shows dancers in surgical masks and is meant to be an encouragement for people to be brave in the face of adversity as well as for everyone to show gratitude to those working on the frontlines of the battle against the pandemic.

Zhu Jiejing, who has danced in leading roles in productions by the theater such as Crested Ibises and The Eternal Wave, said that she and her colleagues were inspired to create the video by the Japanese Matsuyama Ballet Troupe, which had previously made a video to encourage China.

"The simple gestures we were used to, such as a smile, hug and handshake, have now become so difficult," said Wang Jiajun, a male principal dancer with the company.

In the video, Wang can be seen making simple gestures such as hugging himself and taking off the mask to reveal a smile.

"These are not physically difficult movements, but emotionally powerful. I want it to be a dance performed for the whole world," he said.

According to Ma Chencheng, president of SMG Live, people live in different cultures but share many common concerns.

"People's ideas are not so different, especially certain key values," he said. "We just express our feelings differently sometimes. This dance is aimed at channeling communication and getting the voice from China heard by the international theater community."