presents

Nu: Past and Present

CLICK HERE FOR PROGRAM SYNOPSIS

on

Saturday, October 13, 2007 at 7:30 PM

Sunday, October 14, 2007 at 2:00 PM

at

Performing Arts Center at Gwinnett Center

Duluth, Georgia

Staged and Directed by:

Hwee-Eng Y. Lee

Guest Artists:

Li-Chuan Lin, Atlanta Ballet
Hangdong Xu, Dance China NY
Kelsey Yip, Atlanta Ballet

Hoyi Chan
Kerry Lee
Hui-Ju Young

Photographers:

Eric Chang
David Goodwin
Ryan Nubel
Lander Stoddard
Christine Zahniser

Click on a dance to see its description:
WOMEN OF CHINA'S DYNASTIES 1.  Moonlight Over the Spring River 2.  Gathering Flowers 3.  Pipa Xing 4.  Zhu Yingtai 5.  Dance of the Manchurian Concubines 6.  Warring Drums on the Golden Mountain 7.  Ribbon Dance of Victory 8.  Forbidden Love 9.  Ta Ge RURAL CHINESE WOMEN 10. Bean Harvest 11. Shan Niu	12.  Kite Dance 13.  Women of the Yellow River Basin 14.  Blow the Suona 15.  Dai Dance - It's a Beautiful Place 16.  Dai Dance - Rain Bamboo Forest 17.  Xinjiang Dance - Happy Celebration 18.  Tibet Dance - Lucky Drum Dance 19.  Mongolian Dance - Grassland Girls CHINESE WOMEN TODAY 20.  Go to School 21.  A Green Leaf 22.  Nu 2007

1.  MOONLIGHT OVER THE SPRING RIVER

The choreography of this well-known classical Chinese dance was designed to accompany a classical tune of the same name.  It creates a serene picture of ancient Chinese ladies who are dancing under the moonlight, expressing their yearning with the gracious movements of the feather fans.

Choreographers: Margaret Yuen (Feather Fan); Hwee-Eng Y. Lee (Long Sleeves)

Long Sleeves Dancers: Grace Ho, April Huang, Melissa Ting, Kimberly Wu

Feather Fan Dancers: Catherine Chu, Stephanie Hu, Jessica Kouch, Katie Ku, Allison Kwan, Alda Lee, Tiffany Liu, Lindsey Lue, Michelle McIntire, Tanya Su, Georgia Tse, Alice Yee, Amy Yee

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2.  GATHERING FLOWERS
 

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3.  PIPA XING

The pipa is a traditional Chinese musical instrument.  This dance was choreographed based on a famous poem written by Bai Juyi.  In 815, Bai suddenly heard a pipa tune on a harbor on the Yangtze River.  He learned that the musician was formerly a famous star in the capital but was later forced to lower herself to marry a merchant after her beauty faded.  Her sadness reminded Bai of his own recent demotion, and he wrote this poem for her.

Choreography: Guangzhou Jun Qu Zhan Shi Music and Dance Troupe (National Dance Competition Award-Winning Piece)
Dancer: Queena Kou

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4.  ZHU YINGTAI
 

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5.  DANCE OF THE MANCHURIAN CONCUBINES

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6.  WARRING DRUMS ON THE GOLDEN MOUNTAIN
 

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7.  RIBBON DANCE OF VICTORY

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8.  FORBIDDEN LOVE

This classical Chinese dance pas de deux depicts two young lovers meeting in secrecy.  In Imperial China, marriages were generally arranged by matchmakers at a very young age.  Thus, women were often forbidden from seeing their true love.  This dance illustrates the lovers' sorrow at the prospect of never seeing each other again.

Watch the video here!

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9.  TA GE

Ta Ge literally means "tapping with the song" in Chinese.  This dance style originated from folklife during the Han Dynasty over 2,000 years ago and became very widespread by the Tang Dynasty (618-907).  The piece paints a picture of a group of young ladies enjoying a beautiful day outdoors.  The choreographer incorporated various sleeve techniques from the Han, Tang, Song, and Qing dynasties into a unique classical Chinese dance with a contemporary twist.

Choreography: Sun Yun (National Lotus Dance Competition Award-Winning Piece)
Dancers: Emery Chang, Autumn Coleman, Grace Ho, Justina Ho, Chanie Howard, April Huang, Queena Kou, Angela Liu, Eugenie Ooi, Julia Shyu, Catherine Stoddard, Melissa Ting, Emily Wang, Kimberly Wu

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10.  BEAN HARVEST

Soy beans are one of the major ingredients in Chinese food.  This Chinese folk dance depicts a group of Han village girls harvesting soy beans and cooking soy milk.

Choreography: Huai Nan Shi Number Four Primary School
Dancers: Mei-Jing Bernard, Laura Brockmann, Claire Chang, Ruby Freeman, Monica Ho, Lacey Krakowiak, Shannon Leeman, Tiffany Leeman, Rachel Leong, Alice Y. McCurley, Penny Young

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11.  SHAN NIU

"Shan" is translated as mountain and "niu" as young girl.  This Chinese folk dance depicts a Han village girl playing on the street.  The choreographer utilizes traditional handkerchief techniques to show the playfulness of the girl.

Choreography: Shanghai Drama Academy (Tao Li Cup Competition Award-Winning Piece)

Dancer: Kateri Goodwin (Saturday); Anna Meyer (Sunday)

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12.  KITE DANCE

Kite-making is a Chinese handicraft.  The Chinese word for kite is "feng zheng."  "Feng" means wind and "zheng" is a Chinese musical instrument.  The name originated from a person named Li Ye from the tenth century who fastened a bamboo whistle to a kite.  Flying high overhead in the wind, the whistle sounded like the Chinese musical instrument.  In this Han folk dance a young girl flies a kite, which is represented by group dancers who create various shapes with fans.

Choreography:  Hwee-Eng Y. Lee
Girl: Kate Zahniser-Word (Saturday); Sophie Archer (Sunday)

Group Dancers: Yi-Shan Bernard, Tia Bi, Mia I-Wah Chan, Sarah Anne Marie Goodwin, Camille Grough, Emma Grough, Hilary Hsieh, Indigo Lee, Jade Leslie, Mia Mercaldo, Jessica Ye

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13.  WOMEN OF THE YELLOW RIVER BASIN
 

This Han Chinese folk dance depicts the daily lives of village women in the Shanxi province in the northern part of China.  Their work includes activities such as washing clothes, sewing, cooking, carrying the "biandan" (carrying pole), and grinding rice.  As they tackle a full day of hard work, they gossip happily with each other.

Choreography: Shanxi Province Song and Dance Troupe
Dancers: Dawn Causey, Maggie Chang, Nancy Chen, Irene Chien, Debbie Ellis, Margery Hwang, Agate Lip, Iyabo Shabazz, Shu Wu, Shu-Fen Yang

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14.  BLOW THE SUONA

The "suona" is a traditional Chinese musical instrument that closely resembles a trumpet.  Often called "laba," it first appeared in the Wei and Jin period (200-42) and has found great favor since the reign of the Zhengde Emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1505-1521).  The loud volume of the "suona" is most appropriate for an ardent and lively style, particularly for the imitation of the song of hundred birds.  The instrument is commonly used as accompaniment in local theaters, singing and dancing, or on such occasions as weddings, funerals, or other ceremonies.  In this Han folk dance piece, the boys and girls compete with one another for the loudest volume.

Choreography: China Shou-La-Shou Arts Troupe
Dancers: June Brenner, Carolyn Butler, Freda Chen, Katherine Do, Andrew Ellis, Julie Hon, Anna Marianchuk, Nia Nguyen, Jade Phillips, Anna Rappaport, Emily Ye, Andrew Young

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15.  DAI DANCE - THERE IS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE

The Dai people are one of the fifty-six minority ethnic groups in China.  They live mostly in the Yunnan province located in the southwestern part of China.  Because of their close proximity to Myanmar, Dai dance is very similar to Burmese dance.  This piece was originally choreographed for ACDC by Tang Yebi, a Dai lady.

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16.  DAI DANCE - RAIN BAMBOO FOREST

The Dai people live in an area abundant in bamboo.  Thus, women have close associations with bamboo products.  In addition to bamboo-made houses, there are records of stories, folklore, and myths about bamboo.  In this piece, the dancers wears a hat made of bamboo.

Choreography: Central University for Nationalities (Tao Li Cup Competition Award-Winning Piece)

Dancer: Eugenie Ooi

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17.  XINJIANG DANCE - HAPPY CELEBRATION

The Ughyer (or "wei wu er") people are on of the fifty-six minority ethnic groups in China.  They live mostly in the Xinjiang Ughyer Autonomous Region located in the northwestern part of China, which is close to the Middle East.  Ughyer people love music and dance.  It is a crucial element for every social gathering.  Intricate wrist and neck movements are the distinct characteristics of their style.

Choreography: Urumqi Shao Nian Gong

Dancers: Sophie Archer, Emily Backer, Christy Chang, Vera Chang, Marjorie Chamberlain, Kateri Goodwin, Madeleine Harris, Molly Herman-Gallow, Leslie Lue, Anna Meyer, Kate Zahniser-Word, Janie Wu

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18.  TIBET DANCE - LUCKY DRUM DANCE

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19.  MONGOLIAN DANCE - GRASSLAND GIRLS

Mongolians are one of the fifty-six minority ethnic groups in China.  They live primarily on vast prairies in the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region in the northern part of China.  Many of the people live as shepherds.  Their traditional culture has a close relationship with sheep, horses, and eagles.  This dance is characterized by vigorous and energetic movements.  Some of the movements evoke the image of horseback riding.

Watch the video here!

Choreography: Inner Mongolia Song and Dance Troupe
Dancers: Emery Chang, Grace Ho, April Huang, Queena Kou, Eugenie Ooi, Catherine Stoddard, Melissa Ting, Emily Wang, Kimberly Wu

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20.  GO TO SCHOOL

A group of village girls happily carry their book bags to school.  They are proud of their village for building a school for them with great facilities.  Being able to attend school is quite a privilege to the girls, as females were forbidden from attending in the past.  They look forward to their graduation and their potential to contribute their knowledge to their home village.

Watch the video here!

Choreography: Nanjing Arts Academy

Dancers: Janie Wu (lead), Sophie Archer, Emily Backer, Christy Chang, Vera Chang, Marjorie Chamberlain, Kateri Goodwin, Madeleine Harris, Molly Herman-Gallow, Leslie Lue, Anna Meyer, Kate Zahniser-Word

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21.  A GREEN LEAF

This piece combines modern dance and traditional Chinese fan dance techniques to illustrate multiple facest of the contemporary Chinese woman.  The freedom of movement in modern dance represents individuality and hope for the future while the fan symbolizes traditional Chinese values passed down from generation to generation.  The music for this piece, Yanni's "Nightingale," was composed by a western artist and features a traditional Chinese flute.  It was the first performance by a western artist at Forbidden City in China and was broadcast on China Central Television (CCTV) throughout the nation.  It later inspired the choreography of this piece.  This exchange of cultures is a key aspect of the lives of Chinese women today.

Watch the video here!

Choreography: Beijing Dance Academy (Tao Li Cup Competition Award-Winning Piece)

Dancer: Kerry Lee (Guest Artist)

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22.  NU 2007

In today's increasingly global world, the lifestyles of Chinese women in both China and abroad are becoming increasingly similar to women of the western world.  They are often dependent on technology such as cell phones, iPods, and laptops and are generally free to date men of their choice.  This piece combines modern dance and traditional Chinese fan dance techniques to convey the intense, assertive character of contemporary Chinese women.

Staged by Hwee-Eng Y. Lee after Bik Yim Yu of the Hong Kong Academy of the Performing Arts (Tao Li Cup Competition Award-Winning Piece)
Male Lead Dancer: Li-Chuan Lin (Guest Artist, Atlanta Ballet)
Female Lead Dancers: Hoyi Chan (Guest Artist), Kerry Lee (Guest Artist), Kelsey Yip (Guest Artist, Atlanta Ballet), Hui-Ju Young (Guest Artist)
Group Dancers: Emery Chang, Irene Chien, Autumn Coleman, Grace Ho, Justina Ho, Chanie Howard, April Huang, Queena Kou, Angela Liu, Eugenie Ooi, Emily Pau, Julia Shyu, Catherine Stoddard, Melissa Ting, Emily Wang, Kimberly Wu

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