Grace Chang was one of the biggest stars of postwar Hong Kong film and popular music, most remembered for her debut role in Mambo Girl, which introduced to Chinese cinema the figure of the singing and dancing teenager. Her performances introduced new, foreign musical styles—such as American rock ’n’ roll, swing, mambo, calypso, and cha-cha—to audiences. Moreover, Chang’s rise to stardom precipitated an important turn in the evolution of the songstress film. Until this moment, singing films far outnumbered song-and-dance films, and musical expression centered primarily upon vocal performance. But in Chang’s vehicles, we see dance promoted to an equal...