August Rising

EVENT:
August Rising, A Production of the China Dance Theater

DATE:
Friday, March 23, 2001

TIME:
7:30 p.m.

LOCATION:
Alice Jepson Theatre, Modlin Center for the Arts, University of Richmond

TICKET INFORMATION:
$20, adults; $18, senior citizens. Available from the Modlin Center Box Office at 289-8980. Tickets are very limited because of heavy subscription and campus sales.

PROGRAM INFORMATION:
Consisting of 40 dancers plus choreographers, a chorus, an orchestra and a stage design team, China Dance Theater is the largest music and dance troupe in China. Their performances combine modern interpretive works with patriotic expressions and traditional dance forms from a variety of regions. All of the dances included in this two-part program have won the highest level awards at national dance competitions. A program list is enclosed.

SPONSOR INFORMATION:
Presented in partnership with The Organization of Chinese Americans and The Richmond Chinese School

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL SAMANTHA SAWYER, MARKETING DIRECTOR, MODLIN CENTER
(804) 287-6893

Program List

AUGUST RISING
A production of the China Dance Theater

PART I
Ode to the Red Flag
(a choreographed version of the symphony Ode to the Red Flag - a patriotic tribute to motherland China)
Choreographer Shou He Zhang, Composer Qi Ming Lu

Playing Chess
(a stylized battle between opponents)
Choreographer Yu Peng Sun, Composer Wei Liang Zhang

Shan Zhi
(an abstract philosophic solo)
Choreographer Ji Gang Zhang, Composer anonymous

Pastoral Song
(a beautiful pas de deux of young Mongolian lovers )
Choreographer Wei Ding, Composer anonymous

Love
(a young woman who cannot be with her lover suffers the pain of separation)
Choreographer Ji Gang Zhang, Composer Qian Yi Zhang

Ode to the Water-Lily
(illusions of floating water lilies spirits, featuring tiny half toe steps typical of female Chinese dancing)
Choreographer Shao Shu Huang, Composer Xiao Li Ding

INTERMISSION

PART II
A Holiday for the Students
(young male students having fun on holiday, featuring brisk movements and technically demanding feats)
Choreographers Wei Ya Chen and Yan Wang, Composer Xiao Li Ding

Flying Apsaras
(dancing spirit fairies of the Dunhuang Grottoes, an ancient sacred place for Chinese Buddists in the western desert of China. The dancers re-stage the unique ribbon dancing style from the Tang Dynasty.)
Choreographer Qing Zuo, Composer Bing Yuan Cui

Terra Cotta Qin Warrior
(Terra Cotta in the Qin Dynasty is one of the eight World Wonders. This work is very muscular and powerful. It depicts the unyielding soul of the warriors fighting fiercely in the battlefield.)
Choreographer Wei Ya Chen, Composer anonymous

Green Leaf
(a frontier guard wishing for spring in the bitter cold winter)
Choreographer Yan Wang, Composer anonymous

Lady Zhao Jun - Princess Goes West
(rich national style, this work depicts the journey of Lady Zhaojun to the west yearning for home. It displays the long time friendship between the Han and the ethnic groups and features a famous Chinese sleeve solo.)
Choreographers Hua Xuan Jiang and Guo Ben Wu, Composer Nai Cheng Zhang

Yellow Earth
(The company finale set to flower drum music of Jinnan in the province of Shanxi, a wild and expansive region of northern China, through which the Yellow River flows. The dancers strike earthy, robust, vigorous movements, painting a vivid picture of the personality and character of the people who have inhabited this land for thousands of years.)
Choreographer Ji Gang Zhang, Composer Zhen Ning Wang