Thomas Hanner Ballet master
thanner1@comacst.net
(609) 238=3229 (NJ)
Lanwei Ji Chinese dance master
Lanweiji@hotmail.com
(215) 271-8264 (Philadelphia)
Yu Wei: As a professional dancer I have been busy touring and performing every year since 2005. Performing on stage is almost the easiest part to me because when the house lights dim and the music begins I have already done 80% of the work. I have created the choreography, rehearsed the pieces and trained my body; I have prepared the music, designed and made the costumes, and copied the lighting files and program notes to the technicians at each theater. I have also designed and printed my presentation materials, bought airline tickets and made hotel reservations, rented ground transportation and scheduled rehearsal times for each event. I have prepared special food and packed my equipment and costumes and personal items in suitcases that will pass through airport security checks. Finally I am ready for my performance. All this preparation is a big challenge for a solo dancer who feels an enormous responsibility both to her audiences and to her presenters. I am not able to teach regular classes on my current schedule, but I do some teaching during the tours which is arranged by the presenters, and I also do workshops and performances for schools and seniors in conjunction with my public performances.
I love young dancers. To be with them reminds me of when I was a student. I am so curious to learn about the world so I can enlarge my great dream for dance. Many years have past since I followed my dream and came to America and began touring and performing. Now my dream is come true and I am proud for myself.
I do not have a naturally great body condition as a dancer. I have inflexible hips, a short upper-body and long legs that caused me a lot of uneasiness when I was a student in the ballet classes. Every dancer knows that the basic natural condition of the body is not able to change much, but it can be adjusted and improved. I worked very hard in and out of classes. I have an excellent sense for dance, and my hard work improved the technical level of my turns and jumps, and eventually my body’s ability to harmonize these skills made my movements beautiful and graceful.
When modern dance was introduced to China in the 1980’s I was fascinated by its new methods, the dancing in bare feet and the full body contact with the dance floor that created a more physical feeling closer to the spontaneous roots of dance. I was fascinated by the new possibilities of movement and this new aspect of dance style, and I performed many modern dances when I was with the Wuhan Song and Dance Company.
When I saw Mr. Huang’s De Yang-Ge folk dance, I was so attracted by it’s vivid, beautiful and proud style. I switched my love from modern dance to the folk dance, and after long years of study I learned that folk dance is a reflection of the farmers life and its spirit is deeply rooted in the people’s hearts. I have loved it since… the depth of dance, the soul of dance.
In 1992 I moved to Beijing and I had the opportunities to tour in performances in the Guang-Xi and Yun-Nan provinces where I worked with ethnic dancers and became acquainted with their expressive style, and my eyes were opened once again and I felt I was floating in a new ocean of dance.
Now, I am dancing in America and in the world. I love to be on stage and dance freely; to feel my body’s limitation become limitless. I am relaxed on stage and joyful that the dances I have created are loved by my audience everywhere I perform.
