Beijing Dance Theatre performs dance prose the Wild Grass in Canadian cities in September 2017
Renowned for the alluring fusion of Chinese tradition with a fiercely modern sensibility, Ballet Wild Grass is adapted from the poetry collection Wild Grass written by Chinese literary giant Lu Xun in 1927.
Comprising three movements, “Dead Fire,” “Farewell of the Shadow,” and “Dance of Extremity”, Wild Grass unfolds as an evocative abstraction of Lu’s volatile elemental landscapes, accompanied by solo piano, strings, and experimental electronica. White paper leaves scatter underfoot as dancers alternate between balletic grace and tension, conjuring the fragility and vitality of the human spirit.
It has been toured more than 100 performances in BAM theatre of New York, Kennedy Center of Washington, Harris Theatre of Chicago, and many other main city theatres in USA, Europe and Australia.
Performer: Beijing Dance Theater
Director and Choreographer:
Wang Yuanyuan
Choreographer of Ballet Raise the Red Lantern
Resident choreographer for the National Ballet of China
Guest choreographer for the New York City Choreographic Institute, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Royal Danish Ballet and Shanghai Ballet.
Set and Lights: Han Jiang
Composers:
Su Chong (Germany): Oscar winning original music of Last Empire
Biosphere (Norway)
Kangding Ray (France)
Wang Peng (China)
Dances - Three Movements:
First Movement: Dead Fire
“I dream that I am racing on ice mountains. These are huge ice mountains, whose tops join the icy skies covered with frozen, scale-like clouds. At the foot of the mountains grow icy trees, whose leaves resemble pine needles. All cold. All pale. ”
“This is Dead Fire. It has burning form but no flickering. It stands frozen like corals, with black smoke curdled on its tips that makes you wonder whether it has just emerged from a house on fire – and that is why it looks burnt and dead. ”
“A wisp of black smoke issues from me, rising and twirling like a snake. The ice valley is suddenly surrounded by flowing flames, me in the middle. I look down and see Dead Fire burning, consuming my clothes. I melt and drip onto the icy ground. ”
Second Movement: Farewell, Shadows!
“I am but a shadow, about to depart and sink into darkness. But darkness will swallow me, even as light will vanish me. Yet I will not linger ambivalently between light and darkness: I would rather sink into darkness. ”
“Yet I linger between light and darkness; know not whether it is dusk or dawn. Let me raise my ashen grey hand and feign a toast; I shall journey far, far away, unbeknownst to all. ”
Third Movement: Dance of Extremity
“And there remains only the vast wilderness; this dried couple, completely naked, sword in hand, stand in the middle. With dead men's eyes they observe with gusto the withering passers-by in a great bloodless carnage. They are eternally plunged into life's giddy, excruciating bliss. ”
Performance schedule:
Winnipeg, Manitoba: September 26, 2017
Ottawa, Ontario: Septemer 29 and 30, 2017。 For Ottawa ticket sale, please click on this link: http://www.ticketfly.com/search/?q=wild+grass
Comprising three movements, “Dead Fire,” “Farewell of the Shadow,” and “Dance of Extremity”, Wild Grass unfolds as an evocative abstraction of Lu’s volatile elemental landscapes, accompanied by solo piano, strings, and experimental electronica. White paper leaves scatter underfoot as dancers alternate between balletic grace and tension, conjuring the fragility and vitality of the human spirit.
It has been toured more than 100 performances in BAM theatre of New York, Kennedy Center of Washington, Harris Theatre of Chicago, and many other main city theatres in USA, Europe and Australia.
Performer: Beijing Dance Theater
Director and Choreographer:
Wang Yuanyuan
Choreographer of Ballet Raise the Red Lantern
Resident choreographer for the National Ballet of China
Guest choreographer for the New York City Choreographic Institute, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Royal Danish Ballet and Shanghai Ballet.
Set and Lights: Han Jiang
Composers:
Su Chong (Germany): Oscar winning original music of Last Empire
Biosphere (Norway)
Kangding Ray (France)
Wang Peng (China)
Dances - Three Movements:
First Movement: Dead Fire
“I dream that I am racing on ice mountains. These are huge ice mountains, whose tops join the icy skies covered with frozen, scale-like clouds. At the foot of the mountains grow icy trees, whose leaves resemble pine needles. All cold. All pale. ”
“This is Dead Fire. It has burning form but no flickering. It stands frozen like corals, with black smoke curdled on its tips that makes you wonder whether it has just emerged from a house on fire – and that is why it looks burnt and dead. ”
“A wisp of black smoke issues from me, rising and twirling like a snake. The ice valley is suddenly surrounded by flowing flames, me in the middle. I look down and see Dead Fire burning, consuming my clothes. I melt and drip onto the icy ground. ”
Second Movement: Farewell, Shadows!
“I am but a shadow, about to depart and sink into darkness. But darkness will swallow me, even as light will vanish me. Yet I will not linger ambivalently between light and darkness: I would rather sink into darkness. ”
“Yet I linger between light and darkness; know not whether it is dusk or dawn. Let me raise my ashen grey hand and feign a toast; I shall journey far, far away, unbeknownst to all. ”
Third Movement: Dance of Extremity
“And there remains only the vast wilderness; this dried couple, completely naked, sword in hand, stand in the middle. With dead men's eyes they observe with gusto the withering passers-by in a great bloodless carnage. They are eternally plunged into life's giddy, excruciating bliss. ”
Performance schedule:
Winnipeg, Manitoba: September 26, 2017
Ottawa, Ontario: Septemer 29 and 30, 2017。 For Ottawa ticket sale, please click on this link: http://www.ticketfly.com/search/?q=wild+grass