Finding the perfect balance in dance

Witnessing the death of a young friend in a stage accident 16 years ago prompted senior choreographer Lin Shiu-wei (林秀偉) to wonder whether human beings, however brave and strong, amount to nothing in the face of inescapable death.

Her spiritual musings led Lin to turn to tantric Buddhism and integrate its ideas into her choreography "as a form of self-therapy" after the shocking incident.

Mandalas (曼陀羅), the splendid image plates particular to tantric Buddhism, have thus become an inspiration for her. Literally meaning "the place of truth," mandalas help adherents of tantric Buddhism purge their minds through the beauty of images.

The Life of Mandalas (生之曼陀羅), the debut performance in 1987 of Lin's Tai-gu Tales Dance Theater (太古踏舞團), will be re-staged next week in Taipei before travelling to New York's Joyce Theater as part of the venue's reopening celebration in February.

Lin chose to perform the piece after so long because the Buddhist-influenced work "can be seen as an alternative to the world's current conflicts between Christianity and Islam." The piece is Lin's choreographic interpretation of the harmonious composition and spiritual content of mandalas. "Like the circular composition of mandalas, the history of the world evolves in a cycle," Lin said. "The world may be moving toward the darker phase now, but it will come into bright light again."

Not only is The Life of Mandalas Lin's most celebrated work, it's also the piece with which she established her own dance form ? tai-gu-ta. (太古踏) "Tai-gu-ta presents nature with bodily movements in a contemporary spirit," Lin explained. The spirit of tai-gu-ta is "a quest for harmony in the universe."

In The Life of Mandalas' four episodes -- Distillation, Desire, Awakening and Mantra -- a cast of six Chinese opera singers, including Wu Hsing-Kuo (吳興國) of the Contemporary Legend Theater, and six female modern dancers are taken to task in the physically demanding piece and prove stunning. Lin, with charisma, absorption and impeccable technique, is an intense presence on stage.

Throughout the show, dancers turn themselves into the beasts, plants or spirits in mandalas and form one splendid formation after another, their bodies twisted into improbable shapes in strenuous movement. The visual impact the dance creates is breathtaking.

In The Life of Mandalas Lin will be working with composer Shi Chiei-yun, stage designer Chang Wang and the acclaimed costume stylist Yeh Ching-tan.

Tai-gu Tales Dance Company will perform The Life of Mandalas from Nov. 6 to Nov. 10 at 7:30pm at Huashan Arts District. Tickets are available through Acer ticketing outlets or by calling the group at (02) 23688455.