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Water Locale
Danshui River
Audience Site
ZhuWei Area
link to newspaper article about Taipei performance
History
Plum Tree Creek, a branch of Danshui River, is the only fresh water in the ZhuWei Area, but now it has almost become a stinking gutter. Since 2010, some local literature and history workers, artists in different fields and some residents with eco-awareness created an organization. They want to improve the restoration of Plum Tree Creek through environmental cultural action, not only to bring to official attention, but also to build up the collective consciousness of residents for the environmental issue in their living area. We, Dancecology also want to contribute our performing, to let more and more people feel the importance of water issue. So we joined the Global Water Dance, and connected it to the restoration action of Plum Tree Creek.
The Choreographers
Peng, Hsiao-yin(Grace) The artistic director and choreographer of Dancecology, the dancer of The Neo-classic Dance Company, graduated from the graduate school of choreography at Taipei National University of Arts, and Agronomy Department, National Taiwan University In Oct. 2009, Hsiao-yin and some good friends, coming from different fields of arts (image design, photography, installation design and performing art), establish “Dancecology”, a combined performing group in a new style.
Combining performance and visual art, Dancecology’s works break the restrictions of stage, and present the unique atmosphere of environmental theater. Through the cross-over cooperative creation based on the ecological concepts “circulation” and “symbiosis”, they advocate the concepts of mutual-nourishing and self-curing in the ecological system, which present unconventional issues of nature and humanity’s concerns. By developing the rhythm connecting with the natural environment according to the dancers’ individual particular body, they show the extraordinary power of body; further, they endeavor to create the common symbolic imagination and identification along with the audience, being symbiotic with nature and the space.
The Performance
The performance was postponed until July 2 due to typhoon!
The dance drew our attention to the importance of water and the need for safe drinking water for everyone.
Eight dancers and two musicians performed, and were joined by children from Zhuwei Elementary School for sections three and four (“The Water Dance” and “Confluence”), the sections performed by all groups across the world.
Peng choreographed the first two sections: “Flowing with Water,” which aimed to gather the energy of participants and flow along with the Plum Tree Creek, and “The Story of Plum Tree Creek,” describing human beings’ impact upon their environment.
To encourage people to get involved in helping to save the creek and protect Taiwan’s environment, audience members were invited to join the dancers at certain points. In “Confluence,” the dancers led the audience in a group dance. In “The Water Dance,” dancers and volunteers performed the same moves that were being danced all over the world for GWD.
Email contact
Local website
http://dancecology.blogspot.com/
Special 2012 Performance
Global Water Dances is very pleased to announce that Dancecology is able to present a 2012 Global Water Dances performance on October 13th. For this performance, they have the support of Taipei Water Department, a governmental association, that has allowed the dancers to use the Department’s water park. The performance will be combined with their environmental educational center. Grace Peng is the Director of the group Dancecology, and created a performance in 2011. We are honored to have Taipei participate again this year.
Read more about the performance.