Happy Lunar New Year from the USC US-China Institute!
Hood, Veil, Shoes
“Hood, Veil, Shoes” responds to the visceral heat of urban transit in Taipei, Taiwan's bustling capital city, where gender-based rites of passage for young women overflow into and permeate their daily journeys through the urban landscape.
Where
Cheng-Chieh Yu created her latest work, “Hood, Veil, Shoes,” especially for the vibrant, Taiwan-based Sun-Shier Dance Theatre, founded by alumni of the internationally-acclaimed Cloud Gate Dance Theatre. Through Yu’s kinetically-charged choreography, action-charged scenarios of overcrowded, Southeast Asian traffic culture become trials of the divine body. Dancers become exhaust-veiled heroes morphing to the tensions of social and interpersonal violence. How does the sweat of waiting at the intersection mix with the sweat of desire? The audience is enveloped in a deeply evocative world of gender in motion, fueled by the convergence of libidinal myths that resonate universally.
Yu’s dance theater works illuminate diasporic issues intrinsic to contemporary culture. Her bold kinetics and provocative imagery are built from the acute corporeality of postmodern dance techniques, fused with the martial arts of Tai Chi Chuan and Ba Gua Zhang. Cheng-Chieh Yu’s work challenges the notions of an Asian and Asian-American profile, crisscrossing issues such as gender ascription, socio-political perspectives, and cultural boundaries. Her work has been presented by Dance Theater Workshop, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, PS122, and many others.
Featured Articles
We note the passing of many prominent individuals who played some role in U.S.-China affairs, whether in politics, economics or in helping people in one place understand the other.
Events
Ying Zhu looks at new developments for Chinese and global streaming services.
David Zweig examines China's talent recruitment efforts, particularly towards those scientists and engineers who left China for further study. U.S. universities, labs and companies have long brought in talent from China. Are such people still welcome?