Tamsui: The Cloud Gate Dance Theatre will present five works by choreographers from Taiwan and abroad for its "Spring Riot" program in June to showcase "the raw power and depth of movement," the dance troupe has announced. "The choreographers are going back to pure physical movements. We call it 'bare' Spring Riot. It's not a theme. It is plain and straightforward about works created with (dancers and their) body," Cloud Gate Artistic Director Cheng Tsung-lung said in early March.
According to Focus Taiwan, the program was launched in 2001 to promote young choreographers and was revamped last year to support artists at all stages of their careers. Cheng, who made his "Spring Riot" debut in 2006, said choreographers in the "Spring Riot" program have inspired Cloud Gate and taught dancers new techniques.
This year, five outside artists are being brought in to help choreograph the performance. They include Hiroaki Umeda of Japan, Brussels-based LEE\VAKULYA formed by Taiwan's Lee Chen-wei and Hungarian Vakulya Zoltan, and the heads of three local performing arts groups: Baru Madiljin of Tjimur Dance Theatre, Chen Wu-kang of HORSE, and Yang Nai-hsuan of Les Petites Choses Production.
Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, founded in 1973, was the first contemporary dance company in the Chinese-speaking world. They have performed in the United States and the United Kingdom, among numerous other locations. This year's "Spring Riot" shows will be staged on June 21-22 at the Cloud Gate Dance Theater in Tamsui District, New Taipei. Tickets are available on Opentix.