Huang Yi (Taiwan)
HUANG YI & KUKA
1 October 2017, 7 pm
Municipal Theatre POH
HUANG YI
Taiwanese dancer, choreographer, inventor, and videographer Huang Yi’s pioneering work is steeped in his fascination with the partnership between humans and robots. He interweaves continuous movement with mechanical and multimedia elements to create a form of dance which corresponds with the flow of data, effectively making the performer a dancing instrument. Named by Dance Magazine as one of the “25 to Watch,” Huang was immersed in the arts at a young age, spending much of his childhood in his parents’ studio watching them teach tango and learning to paint alongside his father. He is widely considered one of Asia’s most prolific choreographers.
Huang’s groundbreaking and award-winning work, Huang Yi& KUKA, in which he performs alongside a robot he conceptualized and programmed, opened the 2013 Ars Electronica Festival (Austria), the internationally renowned unique platform for digital art and media culture. In April 2017, Huang Yi& KUKA was the opening performance for the TED Conference in Vancouver. Works choreographed by and featuring Huang have received high praise at venues internationally, including Joyce Theater; Engien-Les-Bains Centre des Arts (France); Tasdance and Dancenorth (Australia); Cloud Gate 2 (Taipei); the Indonesian Dance Festival (Jakarta); New York Live Arts; and the American Dance Festival (North Carolina). Huang’s collaboration with Cloud Gate 2 continues to tour internationally, to much acclaim. He has received awards for his work at the Digital Arts Center Taipei (2010 & 2012); and the 3rd Cross Connection Ballet International Choreography Competition in Copenhagen (2010), among many others across Europe and Asia.
HU CHIEN
Taiwan native Hu Chien received his MFA in Performance and Choreography from the School of Dance of Taipei National University of the Arts. Recent performances include Huang Yi’s Special Order, Double Yellow Lines, Second Skin, Sand and Whisper. He was the leading actor for the micro film Immortelle by Dutch director David Verbeek (nominated for the Spectrum Shots section at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and Taiwan’s Shortcuts series at the 2013 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival. Hu was a member of Cloud Gate 2 from 2012-2013 and has danced with Huang Yi Studio + since 2010.
LIN JOU-WEN
Taiwanese dancer Lin Jou-Wen received her BFA in dance from the Taipei National University of the Arts. Recent performances include Huang Yi’s Special Order, Light, Symphony Project and Spin 2010; Tong Yang-Tze’s Sao at TIFA 2014; leading actress in the micro film Immortelle by Dutch director David Verbeek (nominated for the Spectrum Shots section at the International Film Festival Rotterdam and Taiwan’s Shortcuts series at the 2013 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival); movement design for Process of Death (first prize winner of the digital performance competition at the 2nd Taipei Digital Art Festival); among others. Lin was a recipient of the American Dance Festival Scholarship in 2009. She was a member of Cloud Gate 2 from 2010-2014 and has danced with Huang Yi Studio + since January 2014.