ARTS
Impulses drive Kwan to dance in Chinese garden
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by Charlie Smith
ancouver dancer Ziyian Kwan realizes that as a choreographer, she can be remarkably impulsive. That was on display in 2010 when she danced on four consecutive weekends outside the Gene Cafe at the intersection of Kingsway and Main Street to raise awareness about arts cutbacks. “I had an idea and went with it,” Kwan recently told the Straight by phone. “And it happened.” Last year, in a similar vein, she held a peaceful dance action outside the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. That time, she used her free-flowing and uninhibited movements to oppose anti-Asian hatred that had arisen during the pandemic. The protest reflected her view that art is “always political”. When Kwan’s nonprofit society, Dumb Instrument Dance, needed space last summer, she quickly decided to rent a pop-up space at 336 West Pender Street. Called Morrow, it includes a little gallery in the back, artists in residence, and a studio in the front. “We sell things,” she said. “We have events there. So, again, this was a very impulsive initiative that was in response to the community and the circumstances. And it’s just taken off in an unexpected way.” One of her more recent impulsive ideas
Dumb Instrument Dance artistic director Ziyian Kwan (right) and dance artist Rianne Svelnis plan to perform alongside various plant species in Dreaming of Koi. Photo by David Cooper.
was to stage a dance performance at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. Called Dreaming of Koi, it was created by Kwan and fellow dancer Rianne Svelnis and taiko artist Kage and will premiere at this July’s Dancing on the Edge festival.
Dreaming of Koi is described as “a declaration of wonder for the flora and fauna that exists within and without”. According to Kwan, the audience will experience an intersection between themselves, the artists, and the natural environment
in the spacious garden. “It’s such a sanctuary and an oasis,” Kwan said. “There are so many species there alongside the performers.” Kwan pointed out that ticket holders to the shows will also be able to see a new exhibit in the garden’s gallery, Rivers Have Mouths, which honours stories of relations between Indigenous people and Chinese pioneers. “It’s exciting to have something that has so much gravitas and meaning and history in the same space at the same time as we’re doing our small experiment,” Kwan said with a touch of modesty. Kwan has been dancing for 35 years and choreographing shows for the past seven. As she has become more experienced as a choreographer, she’s striving to become more conscious about her impulses, as well as the choices that she’s making in response to what’s happening in the world. “I’ve been realizing a lot in the last year that art is a medicine,” Kwan said. “And we’re not going to get through any of the horrors that exist—whether they’re around the pandemic or around oppressions of people—without art.” g Dancing on the Edge presents Dreaming of Koi at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden at 5:30 p.m. from July 8 to 10 and from July 12 to 15.
Pandemic enables Kuebler to explore loneliness
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by Charlie Smith
ancouver dance artist Shay Kuebler took notice when former British prime minister Theresa May appointed a “minister for loneliness” in 2018. In a phone interview with the Straight, the veteran choreographer and dancer said that the title, minister of loneliness, sounded so surreal to him. But he soon learned that social isolation and loneliness were two of the leading causes of disease in the U.K. As he studied this issue more deeply, he realized that it would be a worthwhile focus for a dance project, which he has called M.O.I. - Momentum of Isolation. It will have its B.C. premiere as a 45-minute work-in-progress at the Dancing on the Edge Festival. “I knew that it was a really important topic to talk about,” Kuebler told the Straight by phone. “Also, I felt like it’s accessible to almost all of us in some way. There are definitely different layers. All I’m going to do is try to bring a perspective that I have and try to bring a perspective that my artists have.” It will be presented live and online, and each performance will include eight dancers, including Kuebler. He has been working with these artists for the past two or three years with his company, Radical System Art. The pandemic offered plenty of time for online research, enabling the entire company to watch videos and read up on different aspects of loneliness. Solos in the show will explore the experience of social isolation from various perspectives. According to Kuebler,
Radical System Art director and choreographer Shay Kuebler likes injecting some satire into his shows. Photo by Joyce Torres.
group performances act as a counterpoint. “They framework reasons and questions of why these solos or why these ideas or why isolation and loneliness can
happen,” he said. “It’s actually quite a big ensemble piece.” Before Kuebler became one of Vancouver’s marquee contemporary dancers, he was a martial-arts and theatre artist, as well as a tap and hip-hop dancer. He said that this explains why his work is often so imbued with so much physicality and theatricality. He’s also a big fan of satire because he thinks it’s a “really important tool to talk about serious topics”. In addition, he believes that satire plays with the expectations of audiences. So, is there room for satire in a work-in-progress focusing on loneliness and isolation? “I grew up watching lots of standup comedy,” Kuebler replied. “I always felt that comedy was a great vehicle at times to bring forward things that we need to have conversations around. I think it just has to be done delicately— strategically—you know. Of course, the whole show is not a comedy show.” He also sees connections between social isolation, the digital world, and the rise of artificial intelligence. According to Kuebler, these themes will play out in the imagery of the show, which will be presented in an episodic format. “My character, specifically, has a very clear through line, and that’s really important,” Kuebler explained. “I think it helps bookend…these episodes in the work.” g Dancing on the Edge presents Radical System Art’s M.O.I. Momentum of Isolation at the Firehall Arts Centre at 7 p.m. on July 10. It will be streamed on YouTube at 7 p.m. on July 11.
JULY 1 – 8 / 2021
THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT
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