Mapping Dance

Aspiring artists out there trying their damndest to master just one art form may find it daunting to learn that Shen Wei Dance Arts director Shen Wei creates nearly every element of his company's productions -- movement, costumes, set design, the whole bit -- himself. It helps to know that the Hunan-born choreographer got his start in Chinese opera, which acknowledges few cut-and-dried distinctions among these conventions. Wei's reputation for melding dance and visual art into transporting tableaux owes much to that early training, though subsequent stints with Guangdong Modern Dance Co. -- the first of its kind in China -- and the Nikolais/Louis Dance Lab in New York have clearly tempered his considerable knack for spectacle.

Related Content

• Ron Paul Says He Didn't Create Offensive "China Jon" YouTube Video
  January 18, 2012
• Pulling Out of Nazareth
  January 18, 2012
• Resistance Movements
  December 28, 2011
• Steve Reich and Kronos Quartet on Their "Shocking, Terrifying" New Piece, WTC 9/11
  September 19, 2011
• J-Boogie Gets Down Like an Indian John Travolta in New "Undercover" Video
  September 7, 2011

More About

• Shen Wei
• Asia (Band)
• Steve Reich
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media
• Dance

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Events Newsletter: What's happening in town? From underground club nights to the biggest outdoor festivals, our top picks for the week's best events will always keep you in on the action.

Privacy Policy Cancel Continue

The West Coast premiere of Map offers an atlas for gauging these influences on Wei's own process. Set to Steve Reich's "The Desert Music," it outlines seven "movement maps" Wei apparently uses to create the bulk of his choreography. Also on the program is Re- (Part I), inspired by his travels through Tibet and set to the forlorn mantras of an exiled nun. To punctuate the experience, check out the exhibition "Artists Consider the Dalai Lama" on view in the galleries through mid-March.
March 6-8, 8 p.m., 2008