Four dancers hang from the 31st floor of the Kerry Center skyscraper in downtown Shanghai as they move to the sound of the music.

In a spellbinding performance, aerial dance group Bandaloop from the United States wowed the audience below at the start of the China Shanghai International Arts Festival on Friday.

Amelia Rudolph, founder of Bandaloop, described the performance as "life affirming rather than death defying" as dancers performed their moves in the air and tiptoed against the skyscraper's outer glass wall.

"It's important we are not perceived as a stunt," said Thomas Cavanagh, the executive

director in charge of Bandaloop's Shanghai tour. "We are trying to bring dance to a new audience by bringing it to a vertical stage."

Bandaloop's performance was part of the month-long festival of art, theater, music and dance, which will run until Nov 15.

The group has performed in "lots of crazy" locations, such as dancing on cliffs, screens, historical sites and skyscrapers, according to Roel Seeber, who is part of the troupe.

"In South Korea, we went off the top of a 900-foot building," said Seeber, who has been with Bandaloop for eight years.

This was the troupe's first performance in the Chinese mainland although the company

has performed in the US, South America, Africa, Europe and parts of Asia.

Bandaloop's 20-minute routine in Shanghai involved jumping, gliding and swirling in midair before using the outer glass wall of the skyscraper as their dance floor.

The troupe will give two performances every day, from Friday to Sunday and from Oct 22-25 at 11 am and 4 pm at the T3 office building of the Kerry Center Jing'an compound on Nanjing Road West in Shanghai.

People will be able to see the full show from below free of charge.

(By Zhang Kun China Daily)