The whole world discovered the talents of Shen Wei during the 2008 Olympics. His choreography of the opening ceremonies and his inventive LED screen of scenes from Chinese history painted by dancers who became ink brushes readily confirmed the brilliance of the man who holds multiple awards, among them the 2007 McArthur “Genius” Award.
This week his modern dance company launches its five-year Kennedy Center residency with performances of “Map” and “Re-,” the first inspired by abstract movements, the second by his journey to Tibet.
“The two pieces are so different,” he says. “I heard Steve Reich’s ‘The Desert Music’ in 1996 or 1997 and loved the structure, so I decided in 2005 to make a piece using it. There are seven sections to ‘Map.’ Each one explores a different movement. In the first, Rotation, the dancers rotate inwardly and outwardly from their shoulders to foot joints to form a map of tension and harmony.”
Shen Wei explains that the seven sections are united by an ABCDCBA pattern utilizing internal energy to generate a map of internal and external body part movements. The Rotation Map is followed consecutively by the Bouncing Map, the Internal Isolation Map, the Internal Circular Map, the Internal Individual Map, the Bouncing Map 2 and The Map. This final movement culminates in a single map that combines the previous maps to reflect the speed and vigor of the music.
“By ‘Re-’ I mean a return or reply,” he says. “I wanted a dance to represent a spiritual journey to a special place. This piece shows the feelings that came over me during my journey to Tibet. It illustrates the land, the people, the religion and the culture. I love to design and paint my own beautiful backdrops. The one I created for ‘Re-’ (a mandala of blue with white confetti representing nirvana and purity) shows my passion for life.”
Shen Wei cultivated his many talents in China where he was a professional opera performer for the Hunan State Xian Opera Company, as were his parents following their forced stay on a farm prior to the end of the revolution.
“You do everything in Chinese opera,” he says. “I was an actor, singer, dancer and choreographer for five years. Then I founded the Guangdong Modern Dance Company, the first in China.”
In 1995, he emigrated to New York City with scant money, knowing but three words of English and determined to found another dance company. He did so immediately and began to amass engagements and honors. Today his company travels the world performing at festivals. Currently he is working on a new piece for next season’s Lincoln Center Festival and planning workshops for the educational program he will introduce to Washington area university dance departments.
“I don’t look far ahead,” he says. “My goal is to do my best every day at every rehearsal and every performance because you never know where you will end up.”
If you go
Choreographer Shen Wei and company present “Map” and “Re-” as part of Modern Masters, a Celebration of American Modern Dance, at 8 p.m. tonight and Thursday
* Venue: Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater
* Tickets: $22 to $65
* More info: 202-467-4600; 800-444-1324; www.kennedy-center.org
