Shen Wei Dance Arts

[RS Gallery Feature] • Hailed by the New York Times as “startlingly imaginative”, Shen Wei Dance Arts seeks a new approach to movement and the body for both performer and audience. Each work develops an original physical vocabulary based on movement research. The choreography, at turns representational and abstract, incorporates Eastern and Western aesthetics and strong scenic elements to create a painterly, hybridic mise-en-scene. The result is a “fascinating fantasy in movement.”

In the six short years since its inception, the company has assumed a position among the top tier of dance ensembles worldwide. In addition to repeated engagements at the American Dance Festival, Lincoln Center Festival and the Venice Biennale, Shen Wei Dance Arts has appeared in renowned festivals in the U.S. and around the world, from Spoleto to Jacob's Pillow, from Montpellier to Hong Kong to Sydney. The company received the 2005 Helpmann Award for Best Ballet or Dance Work, presented by Sydney Festival in Association with Sydney Opera House. In September, 2006, the company premiered “Re-” (Part One) at the Joyce Theater in New York City, and in 2007, it will initiate a five-year residency at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Selected engagements include: American Dance Festival (2000-2006), Lincoln Center Festival (2003-2005), Jacob’s Pillow (2004 & 2006), the Kennedy Center (2001 and 2005), Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles Music Center (2004), Zellerbach Hall/CalPerformances (2004), Dance Umbrella & Sadler’s Wells in London (2004), La Biennale di Venezia (2004 & 2005), Israel Festival (2004), Het Muziektheater/Amsterdam (2003 & 2005), Sydney Festival (2005), Esplanade in Singapore (2005), Movimentos Festival/Germany (2005), Montpellier Festival/France (2005), Melbourne International Arts Festival(2005), Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal (2006), MODAFE in Seoul, Korea (2006), and Hong Kong New Vision Festival (2006).

Next year, the company will perform at leading halls on five continents, including the Barbican Centre in London, Het Muziektheater in Amsterdam, Disney Hall in Los Angeles, in Mexico City, Melbourne, and Shanghai.

For more information, visit their website, www.ShenWeiDanceArts.org.