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The world is getting smaller. American chains like Starbucks have
sprung up all over China, and Chinese movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon have wowed movie-goers in theaters across the United States.
Economic globalization has brought cultures of the world closer and
closer together. Atlanta Chinese Dance Company’s original Chinese dance
production West to East, East to West explores the impact of
globalization on the development of art and entertainment in China and the
United States. The first section West to East, examines the influence of
ballet and modern dance on the development of Chinese ballet and traditional
Chinese dance in China while the second section East to West, looks at
Chinese history and culture depicted in popular TV shows, movies, opera, and
museum exhibits in the United States. Featured in the production will be
professional guest artists from Atlanta Ballet and New York based companies H.T. Chen & Dancers and
Dance China NY, award-winning choreography from China, as well as original
choreography by artistic director Hwee-Eng Y. Lee.
More
about West to East, East to West
West to East
The emergence of western dance forms such as ballet
and modern dance in China have greatly impacted the development of Chinese
ballet and traditional Chinese dance in China. In the 1950s, Russian artists
brought Russian ballet training to China and assimilated it with the Chinese
training program for dancers. In addition to performing ballet classics such as
Swan Lake and Giselle China also created “Chinese ballets” to tell
stories of their own people, integrating traditional Chinese dance and opera
movement with classical ballet. Guest artists Tara Lee and Nadia
Mara from Atlanta
Ballet and ACDC dancers will
excerpts from the renowned Chinese ballet White-haired Girl. Balletic
influences such as pointed feet, turn out of the legs, high extensions, and
ethereal quality can also be observed in traditional Chinese dances of the late
20th and early 21st centuries, such as award-winning
pieces “Dunhuang Dance – Flying Celestials” and “Rain in a Small Town Lane.” In
recent years, modern dance concepts such as creative self-expression, freedom of
movement, floor work, and sense of gravity have also influenced the development
of traditional Chinese dance in the 21st century, as evidenced in
award-winning solos such as “Cradle,” to be performed by guest artist Kerry Lee
from New York based modern dance company H.T. Chen & Dancers, and “Lu Dai Dang
Feng.”
East
to West
Chinese history and culture has been hot in Atlanta and
across the United States in recent years. Atlanta’s High Museum of Art opened
The First Emperor: China’s Terracotta Army exhibit in November 2008. New
York’s Metropolitan Opera had a sold-out run of an all new opera The First
Emperor in December 2006, showcasing Chinese and non-Chinese superstars such
as Chinese composer Tan Dun, Chinese dancer and choreographer Dou Dou Huang, and
Italian tenor Placido Domingo. Zhang Ziyi hit the big screen across the United
States in Chinese movies Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The House
of Flying Daggers in 2000 and 2004. Amy Tan’s TV series Sagwa, the
Chinese Siamese Cat played on PBS Kids from 2001 to 2002. Puccini’s opera
Turandot, which incorporates the melody from the Chinese song “Jasmine
Flower,” has been performed by opera companies numerous times throughout the
United States. ACDC’s East to West will include original Chinese dance
renditions of the aforementioned Chinese cultural references in mainstream
American art and entertainment choreographed by artistic director Hwee-Eng Y.
Lee specifically for this production. Also featured in this section will be an
award-winning traditional Chinese dance solo “Spirit of the Terracotta Warrior,”
to be performed by guest artist Hangdong Xu from New York based Chinese dance
company Dance China NY.
“Celebration of Life” – A Selection of Chinese Folk Dance
ACDC’s performance of West to East, East to West will
also include a collection of traditional Chinese folk dances based on
celebratory events in Chinese culture. “Celebration of Life” opens with a
traditional Chinese New Year celebration with colorful silk ribbons and
handkerchiefs, and follows with a harvest celebration set in rural China. In
addition to these Han celebrations, “Celebration of Life” will also feature
celebrations unique to minority ethnic groups such as the Tibetan, Mongolian,
Uyghur, and Dai. The section will close with a Han wedding gathering.
About the Atlanta Chinese Dance Company
ACDC is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the
development, advancement, and appreciation of Chinese history and culture
through the art of Chinese dance to metro Atlanta and surrounding areas.
Founded in 1991 by Hwee-Eng Y. Lee, the company currently trains over eighty
dancers. ACDC has presented thirteen original full-evening productions in
theaters such as the Performing Arts Center at Gwinnett Center, Robert Ferst
Center for the Arts, and Rialto Center for the Performing Arts as well as
numerous community outreach performances throughout the metro Atlanta area.
Most notably, the company appeared in the Opening and Closing ceremonies of the
1996 Centennial Olympic Games and the “Chinese variation” of Atlanta Ballet’s
The Nutcracker at the Fabulous Fox Theater for ten consecutive years. In
November 2008, ACDC had the honor of performing at both the media preview and
opening of High Museum of the Art’s The First Emperor: China’s Terracotta
Army art exhibit.
This program is supported in part by:
Pictured above (from left to right):
Kerry Lee and Hangdong Xu in "Forbidden Love" - Photo by
Nipdog Teleprompting
Eugenie Ooi in "Dai Dance - Rain Bamboo Forest" - Photo by
Nipdog Teleprompting
Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya and Queena Kou in "Dunhuang Dance - Flying Celestials"
- Photo by Lander Stoddard
Kateri Goodwin in "Shan Niu" - Photo by
Nipdog Teleprompting
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