The contemporary operatic dance “Dongpo: Life in Poems” is set to take to the stage tomorrow and on Saturday at the Macau Cultural Centre’s (CCM) Grand Auditorium, presenting a show based on the life and poetry of renowned Northern Song Dynasty poet Sū Shì (aka Zizhan).
The show will be performed by the China Oriental Performing Arts Group (COPAG).
Dongpo Jushi was the pseudonym of Sū Shì, who was a writer, calligrapher and painter who lived from 1037 to 1101. He wrote over 2,400 poems, with the upcoming performance summarising emotions throughout his life from 12 of them.
New York-based choreographer Shen Wei is the director of the performance, among other tasks, and is held in collaboration with artistes such as composer-cum-music director Chen Qigang and lighting designer Xiao Lihe,
A meet-the-press event was hosted yesterday at CCM featuring China Oriental Performing Arts Group Principal Performer Su Peng, along with dancers Liu Jie and Zuo Siyuan. The session was held in Putonghua, but was translated by the centre into English.
The performance, which was also staged overseas in the past, will be presented with visual effects that stem from art forms like poetry and calligraphy conveying the poet’s “soul, affection, melancholy and home sickness”, an IC statement provided yesterday noted.
Though its content features ancient literature, the whole production, as directed by Shen Wei, also has a special focus on the physical interpretation, the performers told the media. They added that each dancer has been trained in classical ballet, Chinese dance and some acrobatics, noting that Shen requires precision and accuracy in the physical movement to be presented.
The performers said that they will also interpret the poet’s feelings, mentality and psychological state while he was writing certain poems, which will also be presented through projections and stage effects, among other formats.
Moreover, Su, who is also an associate professor and master tutor at the Beijing Normal University’s Department of Dance, told the Post that Shen Wei emphasised the importance of the physical delivery or movement, trying to avoid or lessen things like facial expressions or words to ensure that the works are presented as a dance or physical performance.
Physical movement, he noted, is an international language, leaving no barriers for audiences who may not understand or be familiar with the poet or his works.
Su added that the international audience may not be interested in the poet’s life or his work, but that’s why Shen Wei tries to deliver the poet’s emotions, philosophy and personality shown through his poems. The performers will tell audiences how the poet thought, felt and what he tried to tell the world during his time.
Moreover, Su told the Post that they hope to use the Macau show to tell more people about Dongpo and his poems to bring awareness to the beauty of Chinese literature and introduce Shen Wei’s production creations.
China Oriental Performing Arts Group (COPAG) dancer Liu Jie (from left to right), Principal Performer Su Peng and dancer Zuo Siyuan pose at the Macau Cultural Centre (CCM) after yesterday’s meet-the-press event. – Photo: Rui Pastorin
