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Shoe-ing off

The Kaoshiung City Ballet has been waging a war against the juggernaut of modern dance for 16 years. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE KAOSHIUNG CITY BALLET

When one thinks of Taiwan's dance world, of course there is the megalithic Cloud Gate Dance Theater (Cloud Gate Dance Theater), the Neo-Classical Dance Company (新古典舞團), the Legend Lin (無垢舞蹈劇場) and several smaller companies (five to 10) people such as Crossover (台北越界舞團), and then there are the individual dancer/choreographers — but they don't do ballet, at least not classical ballet. People who want to see ballet are largely dependent on foreign infusions, which thankfully, have become more frequent in recent years.

If you are a ballet dancer, or a young choreographer who wants to work in ballet, it's even worse. Several fine young dancers have been able to establish careers abroad in companies in Germany, Austria, the US and elsewhere, but choreographers don't usually have that option until they have built up a substantial repertoire.

So that's where Chang Hsiu-ru (張秀如) comes in. She is the founder and artistic director of the Kaoshiung City Ballet, now in its 16th year, and director of the Chang Hsiu-ru Dance School, which celebrated its 30th anniversary last year — and she is on a mission to keep ballet, both classical and modern, alive in Taiwan, for dancers, choreographers and audiences.

Performance notes: WHAT: Kaohsiung City Ballet, Dance Shoe 2007 WHEN: Tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm WHERE: Crown Theater (皇冠藝文中心小劇場), B1, 50, Ln 120, Dunhua N Rd (北市敦化北路120巷50號B1) TICKETS: NT$300 and NT$400, available through www.artsticket.com.tw ● In Tainan on March 10 at 2:30pm and 7:30pm at the Eslite Book Store, Tainan (台南誠品書店) B2 Art Space, 181 Changjung Rd Sec 1, Tainan (台南市長榮路一段181號) ● In Kaoshiung on March 17 at 7:30pm and on March 18 at 2:30pm at the Chihshan Hall, National CKS Cultural Center (高雄市中正文化中心至善廳)

Four years ago Chang launched Dance Shoe, a program designed to give young choreographers a platform for their works and to provide audiences in southern Taiwan — and the rest of the country — the chance to see who will be making headlines in the future.

Tomorrow, Dance Shoe 2007 has its premiere in Taipei, at the Crown Theater, featuring the work of five choreographers, three women and two men, all of whom hail from southern Taiwan. Some will be familiar names to those who have seen the previous Dance Shoe performances, while others are known to fans of the Kaohsiung City Ballet.

Wang Kuo-chuen (王國權) has danced with and choreographed for companies in Belgium and Switzerland. Tsai Po-chen (蔡博丞) is the youngest in the group, but hardly a novice. One of Tsai's pieces was performed in last year's Dance Shoe as were pieces by Chang Lan-yun (張藍勻) and Tung Kuei-ju (董桂汝). Dominique Yen (顏鳳曦), who holds a masters in fine arts from CALARTS is making a name as someone who can create pieces for both ballet and modern.

Judging from previous shows, all are talented, and all prove Chang's faith in southern talent has not been misplaced.

There are two shows of Dance Shoe 2007 tomorrow, at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and then the company heads back down south, for performances next Saturday in Tainan and then the following weekend in Kaohsiung.
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