Dances of the Asian Modern

Page 1

contemporary I dance in the city

Dances Of The Asian Modern

RICHARD CHUA reflects on the evolution of Asian dance and the role of tradition and culture in the creation of modern choreography.

PHOTOGRAPHS: MOHAMMAD SOLEIMANIKHAH AND HUNEID TYEB

F

ormulating an Asian discourse in dance in this part of the world is not easy, lest it gets branded merely as a capitalistic pursuit, creating a superficial version of the new Asian body that reflects the new Asian modern. The organising committee of MyDance Festival, was well aware of this. Working with a small budget notwithstanding, its attempt in showcasing six seemingly aesthetically-disparate works seems to hint at the organisers’ wish to break new ground with dance presentation in Malaysia. However, an overarching problem of overlooking history in the construction of the new Asian modern (appropriating elements of Western modernity to construct a new Asian enlightenment without considering the histories of existing Asian elements) has worked against the programming of the dance festival. Hence, putting Focus Dance Company (Taiwan), Vou (Fiji), T.H.E Dance Company (Singapore), and Daniel Jaber and Dancers (Australia) on the same stage will inevitably bring about cultural, not to mention aesthetic, alienation among scholars of the Asian aesthetic. Interestingly enough, there is a common attempt in all the choreographies to address issues within the fragmented body of the new Asian modern, highlighting its imperfections and possible repercussions on these Asian bodies.

28

DEC-JAN 2012

Photograph: Mohammad Soleimanikhah

Like any other arts institution, The National University of the Arts (Taiwan) dance company, Focus’ attempt in re-making American choreographer Trisha Brown’s Solo Olos is to remind students of pure expressions in dance, while the other two pieces: Yang Ming-Lung’s No Traces and the indigenous aboriginal dance Songs and Dances of Mangayaw of the Puyuma People serve as pieces to anchor the dancers in the Taiwanese culture, both as a Chinese and a member co-existing with the indigenous cultures in Taiwan. These dancers are examples of Asian bodies finding their identity in the new Asian modern of Taiwan. Among the three pieces, Yang Ming-Lung’s No Trace was perhaps the most challenging to the dancers, for the piece relates to the new Chinese body within the Western modernity, through the use of Western modern dance techniques. While the Fijian dance piece was eagerly re-creating a Fijian modernity using elements in popular culture, the Singaporean group fervently rejected the arrival of the body of the new Asian modern, refusing to move away from old memories, highlighting the violence old memories laid on these fragile Asian bodies. Being Asia’s newest modernity, where capitalism has run amok, Singapore has paid its price too: the absence of cultural and


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.