4 & 9 - T0611257693Master of minimalist movement Tao Ye founded TAO in 2008. Now famous for their stripped-down forms, the company brings two pieces from its Numerical Series, both featuring music from Tao's regular collaborator, the avant-garde composer Xiao He. In 4, a quartet move together in perfectly coordinated formation, without ever touching, as if drawn by a magnetic wave. Tao's latest work, 9, signifies a departure from the previous seven works in the series. A significant number in Chinese culture, representing a cycle of hardship and renewal, nine dancers hide connections within chaos. | |
| 24 May 19 to 25 May 19 | Sadler's Wells Theatre, Inner London :: V224 listing details L0964512662 |
6 and 8 - T078912153Established in 2008 by Beijing-based choreographer Tao Ye, TAO Dance Theatre is known for creating work of a mesmeric, trance-like quality. In the "high concept and thrillingly simple" (Evening Standard) 6, six dancers move in dynamic and hypnotising unison, in a shifting landscape of light. The company's newest piece, and the final work of the Straight Line Trilogy, 8 sees eight dancers perform lying instead of standing, restricting their bodies to the floor and limiting their movements to the range of their spines. | |
| 3 Oct 16 to 4 Oct 16 | Sadler's Wells Theatre, Inner London :: V224 listing details L417288382 |
Weight x3/5 - T092398517Weight x 3 is a triptych set to the unmistakable pulsating rhythms of minimalist composer Steve Reich, in which both the music and the dancers seem caught in never-evening loops and repetitions. It features two duets ? the dancers moving in near perfect unison, reflecting the music's shifting patterns ? and a skilful solo in which a female dancer twirls and manipulates a long staff with amazing speed and dexterity. 5 is part of Tao Ye's numbered series of minimalist experiments that explore the potential of the human body as a purely visual form, freed from the constraints of representation or narrative. Accompanied by the music of Chinese Indie-folk-rock composer Xiao He, five dancers touch each other; never separating, moving in an indistinguishable mass.Choreographer To Ye. | |
| 17 Aug 15 to 18 Aug 15 | Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh :: V604 listing details L01853229646 |
6 & 7 - T1985355745In 6, his six dancers move in dynamic and hypnotising unison, in a shifting landscape of light created by Swedish lighting designer Ellen Ruge. His latest work 7 continues Tao Ye's fascination with pattern, precision and ritual, and is distinguished by a sound track of acoustic effects generated by the seven dancers' own bodies. Both 6 & 7 will be accompanied by specially commissioned music from Chinese indie folk composer Xiao He. Running time: 90minsPresented byDance Umbrella (in partnership with Sadler's Wells). | |
| 20 Oct 14 to 21 Oct 14 | Sadler's Wells Theatre, Inner London :: V224 listing details L0958960800 |
4 & 5 - T1916279268In 4, four dancers appear to be moved by a magnetic wave, in turns pulling them apart and drawing them together without ever touching. They are accompanied by the music of Chinese Indie-folk-rock composer Xiao He, who also collaborates on 5, in which five dancers do indeed physically touch each other; never separating, moving in an indistinguishable mass. These works are a continuation of choreographer Tao Ye's minimalist experimentation, exploring the potential of the human body as a visual element, devoid of story-telling or representation. In 2012 TAO Dance Theatre was named a Sadler's Wells New Wave Associate. | |
| 6 Jun 14 to 7 Jun 14 | The Lilian Baylis Theatre, Inner London :: V236 listing details L0136144305 |
2 and Weight x 3 - T143735981TAO Dance Theatre has performed in every modern dance festival throughout China and collaborated with leading Chinese artists across genres including theatre, experimental music, visual arts and installation. Their UK premiere closes 2011’s world tour. Their newest work, 2, is a duet performed by Artistic Director and company founder Tao Ye and Duan Ni. The company recorded their own conversations during rehearsal and daily life for composer Xiao He to use the natural spoken rhythms to develop the accompanying musical score. The resulting performance is both hypnotic and thought provoking as minimalistic movements develop into virtuosic patterns to express the abstract idea of two souls in conversation. Weight x 3 is a triptych of pieces concerned with perceptions of physical practice, performed to the music of Steve Reich. Choreographer Tao Ye explores the idea that people have become disconnected from the body’s creative abilities, and this work is part of his mission to reconnect, through corporeal research, with a sense of self and identity. | |
| 15 Nov 11 to 16 Nov 11 | The Lilian Baylis Theatre, Inner London :: V236 listing details L1028124199 |
