After their sold-out performance at da:ns festival nine years ago, the acclaimed TAO Dance Theater is set to take the stage at Esplanade once again as part of da:ns focus – Connect Asia Now (CAN), a weekend that spotlights contemporary dance works by Asian artists focusing on distinct voices and creative impulses from the region.

Presenting a double bill of two works choreographed by TAO Dance Theater founder Tao Ye, 13 and 14 marks the two latest instalments of their signature Numerical Series. In 13, dancers examine the interactions and connections formed between solo, duet and group dances. In the work, the dancers are connected into a whole, and then gradually fission into different forms, exploring the complexities of impact, extrusion, fusion, and falling, rebound, pull and other infinite phenomena.

Meanwhile in 14, Tao Ye breaks the previous creative method of repeated cycles, and uses the ever-changing texture of movement to explore the space-time possibility between movement and stillness. With a focus on music, the soundtrack adopts a single minimalist well-balanced temperament, using the progressive method of the hour hand to correspond to the complex dynamics of the body in dance, with all possibilities unfolding in a changing yet unchanged rhythm.

Inspired by Asian philosophy and rooting their practice in their own Circular Movement System, Tao Ye and his team are set to present these thought-provoking, minimalist works of repetition and restriction, and show you why they have been recognised as one of Asia’s leading contemporary dance companies. Prior to the show, we spoke to Tao Ye about his practice and life as a dancer. Read the interview in full below:

Bakchormeeboy: Tell us about your dance experience, and what pushed you to start TAO Dance Theater in 2008?

Tao: At the age of 12, I was admitted to the Chongqing Dance School. At the age of 17, I was in the Shanghai Armed Police Art Troupe. At the age of 19, I joined Jin Xing Dance Company. In the same year, I co-founded the “Zu He Niao” with five artists. At the age of 21, I joined the Beijing Modern Dance Company.

At the age of 23, I co-founded TAO Dance Theater with Duan Ni and Wang Hao, and currently have 15 full-time dancers in the company. I started TAO Dance Theater to pursue more independent creation and to explore the infinite nature of body movement.

Bakchormeeboy: What were the biggest challenges you faced when first starting a full-time contemporary dance company? How did you overcome them?

Tao: The biggest challenge since the establishment of the dance company is still operations. At the same time, we also wanted to figure out how to let more people experience dance and allow dancers to live a more dignified life.

Bakchormeeboy: TAO Dance Theater is a leading contemporary dance company in Asia and will soon perform at da:ns focus – Connect Asia Now at the Esplanade in Singapore. What is the significance of this event to you? How will it contribute to the dance scene in the region?

Tao: Singapore is one of the focal points of Asian dance art. We are honored to participate in the Esplanade’s programme in Singapore. I hope that through this exchange, the international art industry will pay more attention to the creations of Asian artist groups.

Bakchormeeboy: The dance company will be presenting a double bill of 13 and 14, the two latest instalments of your signature Numerical Series. Tell us more about this series and what the audience can expect from your upcoming show at the Esplanade.

Tao: The naming of the “Numerical Series” hopes that the audience will come to the scene without any presuppositions, relax their mind, open themselves, talk to the body with the body, and respond to perception with perception. The greatest charm of performing arts is that the expresser and the audience jointly witness the exchange of life at this moment. Dance, as an art that connects all things, hopes that every viewer can feel the possibility of their own world at this moment through the flow of dancers.

Bakchormeeboy: Why do you think people should come watch the performance? What do you hope they can take away from it?

Tao: 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 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.

Bakchormeeboy: What more do you think should be done to encourage more people to enjoy or pursue dance, and more specifically contemporary dance?

Tao: Movement! You can gain feelings in dancing that words cannot reach, because we can’t describe it, everyone can dance, and dance is a deeper release of physical emotions. Modern dance belongs to the dance that everyone thinks and does in this era. Watching or experiencing modern dance can make people more intuitively feel the pulse of contemporary people’s physical practice.

Bakchormeeboy: Pursuing a career in the performing arts can sometimes be frowned upon in Asian households. What would you say to encourage youths who dream of becoming a professional dancer?

Tao: In fact, this is true for anything that the heart yearns for. Pursuing ideals must be pursued unswervingly and continuously. It is normal to be questioned every year or two. Only after ten or twenty years of accumulation can you gain recognition. What matters is whether you have the ability to love the thing you choose all the time, to love one thing consistently and to pursue it to the end.

Photo Credit: Fan Xi

13 & 14 runs from 13th to 15th October 2023 at the Singtel Waterfront Theatre. Tickets available here

da:ns focus 2023: CAN – Connect Asia Now runs from 13th to 15th October 2023 at the Esplanade. More information available here

Production Credits:

13 Choreographer: Tao Ye Composer: Xiao He Lighting Designers: Ma Yue, Tao Ye Costume Designer: Duan Ni Costume Maker: Dnty

14 Choreographer & Sound Conception: Tao Ye Lighting Designers: Ma Yue, Tao Ye Costume Designer: Duan Ni