Chinese folk dancers present 'Dragon's Tale' in Poway


Despite its name, there are no dragons in the modern dance performance "Dragon's Tale."

The mythical creatures symbolize Chinese people and are a huge part of their culture, said dancer and choreographer Nai-Ni Chen, whose work was inspired by traditional Chinese festivals and rituals, but she chose not to incorporate any in the show.

Using props, costumes and choreography, the Nai-Ni Chen dancers embody the excitement of traditional Chinese celebrations and contemporary Chinese American culture. Chen combines martial arts, acrobatics, folk and modern dance to make ancient culture accessible to everyone.

Chen said the show is like a journey that she is sharing with the audience. She wants to show the audience "where I came from and what have I become after being here for 22 years," she said.

Chen and 10 company dancers, who come from all over the world (from Argentina to Taiwan), will perform "Dragon's Tale" at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts on April 16.

Chen was born in Taiwan and at 14 entered the Chinese Cultural University, where she studied Peking Opera, martial arts, music, ballet and modern dance for eight years.

The training Chen received helped shape her approach toward dance later on in life.

"You understand dance, not just by itself. You really relate to other disciplines in art. All of that just gave me a bigger picture of the

dance field. Being a choreographer I had to understand the music part of it, the design of the theater, the costume, the color and the

visual art."

As a young girl, Chen said she was always attuned to movement in her environment.

"I was probably born with a certain desire or sensitivity in that area (choreography)," said Chen, who has a very strong memory of when she was 8 years old, waiting for a bus with her sister and being mesmerized by clouds traveling very fast in the sky. "I was always very sensitive to motion in nature as a kid."

At 13, Chen got her first choreography assignment preparing public school students for a national dance competition. "Those early experiences as a choreographer really challenged me," she said.

Chen still views the world with a choreographer's eye.

"Everything I see in daily life can become a picture of dance in my mind," she said.

At 16, she joined the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, which gave her the opportunity to perform a lot. "I joined the company in 1978 to tour in America. At that time, it was very difficult to go abroad. I was only 18 and it was such an exciting experience," she said.

Chen said she loved performing traditional Chinese dance, but joining Cloud Gate opened up another outlet for her creativity: modern dance.

"The sense of freedom in it just excited me so much," she said. "Traditional dance is beautiful, but it's limited. When you deal with modern work you can have your place and time in the present and even reach into the future. The possibility is endless."


