Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Lily Cai to teach dance students at UT Dallas

By Pegasus News wire

Photo by Marty Sohl

The colorful and symbolic dance forms of ancient China blend with the energy of modern dance movement in February, when Lily Cai comes to the UT Dallas campus for a two-week residency of workshops in dance.

During the residency, members of the Advanced Dance Performance class (DANC3345) will receive intense training as they learn a piece choreographed by Lily Cai. They will take the piece to the American College Dance Festival Association South Central competition at Texas A&M in March.

Cai’s residency culminates in a free lecture and dance demonstration at 8 p.m., February 13, in the University Theater. Cai will discuss the nuances of her craft and the Advanced Dance class students will perform the piece Cai choreographed for them.

“We are delighted that our dance students will have this unique opportunity to work with Lily Cai, whose work is a fusion of her Chinese origins and western modern dance, spanning time from the age of the dynasties to the 21st century,” said Associate Dean for the Arts Kathryn Evans. “Our students will remember this experience for the rest of their lives.”

In addition to Lily Cai’s residency at UT Dallas, the Lily Cai Dance Company will be performing at the Eisemann Center. Before Cai’s on-campus lecture, she and her dance company will present Dynasties and Beyond at 8 p.m., Feb. 7, in the Eisemann Center’s Hill Performance Hall. Tickets are available through the Eisemann online or by calling 972-744-4650.

Cai is a native of Shanghai and former principal dancer with the Shanghai Opera House Dance Troupe. Since arriving in California in 1983, she has been a major authority and resource in Chinese Dance and the integration of Chinese traditional dance with Western ballet and American modern dance.

Posted by Shawn

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