Mesmerising journey back to the origins of movement
“Paying attention to the body is a very important theme in everyone’s life. No matter where you come from or what industry you are engaged in, the body is the origin of our existence, and it may also be the temple of our spirit. By returning to the original force of gazing at the movement of the body, we will connect with each other, microscopically [watching] the lack or abundance of our own energy. Whether it is life or spirit, art can often give us a powerful driving force in life”. These words of Tao Ye, founder and leader of one of the most outstanding Asian dance companies, TAO Dance Theater, encapsulate not only the essence of his art but also the nature of movement-based art in general.
Contrary to their numbers, the performances “16” and “17”, presented in Wrocław, are the fifteenth and sixteenth pieces in the “Numerical Series” of little masterworks. The titles either indicate the order in which the shows came to life or suggest the number of dancers who will appear on stage. It is to encourage viewers to watch the performances without any preconceptions. The idea is to relax the mind, open up to oneself and be ready to communicate with one’s body, listening to its impulses and responding to perception with perception. After all, the real charm of the performing arts is that artists and audiences alike are witnesses to, and participants in, the exchange of energy that is an integral part of life in the present moment. Meanwhile, the dancers are responsible for initiating the process of creating their world through movement.
The performance “16” draws inspiration from two iconic computer games, “Dragon Dance” and “Snake”. Sixteen dancers perform a series of linear movement sequences. They move fluidly, rotate, and progress to create waves of energy that ripple along the lines and spark a multi-layered spatial transformation. “16” unfolds as a constantly shifting, multidimensional structure made of microspaces shaped by subtle head movements, evoking the dazzling complexity of the microscopic world.
The performance “17” builds on the sonic and kinaesthetic experiments first explored in “7”. Seventeen dancers move individually or in groups, with actions that may at times appear chaotic. Sound acts as a signal, triggering impulses, so that the audiosphere remains in sync with the body’s motion, creating a lively interplay. The resulting relationships are mixed, absurd, and unconventional, resembling sound waves made visible, or bursts of bodies spinning like fireworks in the air.
About the Theatre:
TAO Dance Theater is a contemporary dance company founded in 2008 by Tao Ye, Duan Ni, and Wang Hao. The works in their “Numerical Series”, built on a simple creative concept and the “pure” aesthetics of the body, have been performed in over 40 countries across five continents and at more than 100 different arts festivals.
In 2023, in recognition of their pursuit of “simplifying the complex aesthetics of pure dance,” TAO Dance Theater received one of the world’s most prestigious awards—the Silver Lion of the Venice Biennale.
In 2024, the company established a second ensemble, TAO Dance Theater 2, which is dedicated to the idea of “dance for yourself”. With no restrictions on age, profession or nationality, the dancers’ creative expression is more closely connected to life and deeply rooted in the present. Through their work, they share the idea that “the body is theatre” with wide audiences.
About the Director:
Tao Ye, born in Chongqing, graduated from Chongqing Dance School. He performed as a dancer with the Art Troupe of the Political Department of the Shanghai Armed Police Force, Shanghai Jin Xing Dance Theatre, and Beijing Modern Dance Company.
At the age of 23, he founded TAO Dance Theatre. Inspired by Eastern philosophy, he created the “Circular Movement System” and “Numerical Series,” comprising sixteen productions, “Infinity Series Contrast,” “Artistic Site,” “The Twelve Hours,” “Infinite Walk,” and “The World of Movements.”
As one of six choreographers worldwide, he was selected by Sadler’s Wells in the United Kingdom for the New Wave Associates programme. As a guest choreographer, he was commissioned to create a dance performance by Cloud Gate Dance Theatre and Netherlands Dance Theatre 1 (NDT 1). He has participated in numerous cross-border artistic projects related to theatre, fashion and film. In 2023, he won the Silver Lion for dance at the Venice Biennale.
Duan Ni is an artistic director, and founding dancer of TAO Dance Theater. Born in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, Duan Ni trained at the Shaanxi Art School and the Modern Dance Choreography Class (Guangdong Class) of the Beijing Dance Academy, founded by Ms. Yang Meiqi, a renowned Chinese dance educator and former director of Guangdong Modern Dance Company. During her studies, she received the ACC scholarship and attended the American Dance Festival. She was the first to systematically teach the “release technique” in China, and her teaching challenged established concepts of body movement among Chinese dancers. Duan Ni has performed with Jin Xing Dance Theatre in Shanghai, Akram Khan Company in London, and Shen Wei Dance Arts in New York. In 2008, she became the founding dancer and artistic director of TAO Dance Theater. She has performed three times at Lincoln Center in New York with different dance companies and has been featured in The New York Times, which described her as “extraordinarily powerful, awe-inspiring, and with extremely strong control.” In 2023, she won the Silver Lion Award for Dance at the Venice Biennale.
