Internationally-acclaimed choreographer and dancer Yang Liping returns to Brisbane this September with a newly-inspired adaptation of Igor Stravinsky’s ‘Rite Of Spring’.
After having showcased her spectacular piece ‘Under Siege’ for 2017’s Brisbane Festival, the highly successful Chinese artist has turned her focus to ‘Rite Of Spring’, melding her eastern roots with a western story.
“For my approach I have tried to incorporate the eastern elements into this western story with a lot of different elements including one of China's very famous religions and its symbolism and beliefs,” Yang says.
“I'm very, very excited to come back because being able to return to the same stage and the same city means a lot to me and my dance company. I'm very excited.”
Originally written in 1912, Stravinsky’s ‘Rite Of Spring’ tells the story of a woman who dances herself to death in a pagan ritual. The premiere of the show caused a scandal with audience members shocked by the violence and ideas behind Stravinsky’s historical piece causing a riot inside the theatre.
“I tried to approach the woman as very brave and someone who was taking a lot of initiative in the sacrifice ceremony rather than the original story which is quite frightening and oppressive. That is the first difference in my approach. I also tried to focus on rebirth and telling people that after your death you might rebirth after four seasons like a cycle.”
Yang’s adaptation of ‘Rite Of Spring’ draws on her cultural background and heritage. Her home village still has a ceremony for spring which is what gave her the inspiration to explore counter-elements from Stravinsky’s original ballet.
Image © Qiansheng Zhao
“Chinese people believe in Buddha and there is one traditional religion from an area in China that is very high. People normally have to travel very far and it is very dangerous as well just to sacrifice themselves or just to fulfill their belief to see the Buddha. In my adaptation we have actually copied all of the costumes and music and also the poems from that religion into ‘Rite Of Spring’. We have a very famous staging designer and costume designer who has to try to use a lot of visual impact with intending colours and words and also the background of the stage to represent the traditional Chinese culture I am aiming to present.”
After being commissioned by Brisbane Festival to create this piece, Yang created a ten-second promo which was premiered at the Shanghai International Arts Festival in front of event organisers and show buyers. She then spent another six months transforming it into a fully-fledged show.
“After we launched the show in the UK we adjusted a few things again, so for the upcoming show in Brisbane I spent basically a year to make the show. The original music for 'Rite Of Spring' is 20 minutes but we actually extended the music into over an hour so that took a lot of work as well for everybody who devoted their time to the project.”
