How does Taiwanese society deal with its Chinese cultural heritage today - while China threatens it daily with war and conquest? And how do other culturally Chinese-influenced societies feel about this? How do political systems affect our lives, actions and thoughts? The dance theatre piece "The Seas Between Us" by the German-based Taiwanese choreographer Lo Fang-Yun and the dancers Chou Shu-Yi and Lee Mun Wai is dedicated to the unresolved conflict between Taiwan and China, but also more comprehensively to the relationships between historically Chinese-influenced societies and in relation to the West - through the common language of dance.

In a joint process with a team of artists from Taiwan, Singapore and China, a touching duet was created, a portrait of two extraordinary dancers and the political systems that characterise them. Chou and Lee revisit their different dance biographies on stage, switching between movement and language, between togetherness and juxtaposition, and using their bodies to sense how personal life paths and global political conflicts intertwine.

Biography

Biography Image

Photo: Sabrina Weniger

Taiwanese-born director and choreographer Fang Yun Lo has been working with artists from various disciplines under the Polymer DMT label since 2011. Polymer DMT is based in Essen and Dresden/ Germany as well as in Taichung/ Taiwan. Since 2018, Fang Yun Lo and Polymer DMT have been working on a cycle of stage productions that deal with identity(ies), home and migration, including "Home Away From Home" (2022) and "Kim" (2023).

Cast & Credits

Dance, co-creationChou Shu-Yi, Lee Mun Wai
Artistic direction, stage directionLo Fang-Yun
Artistic collaborationChang Chu-Zhi
DramaturgyChen Cheng-Ting
Costume designChristina Lelli
Set design, lighting designMichele Piazzi
MusicDavid Le Thai
Technical management, sound engineeringMarius Kirch
Production managementSabina Stücker (D), Tsai Ya-Ting (TW)

Funding

The Seas Between Us is a production of Polymer DMT, in co-production with HELLERAU European Centre for the Arts Dresden and PACT Zollverein Essen Recherche Partner: National Theatre & Concert Hall Taipei

Supported by the Kunststiftung NRW, the Kulturstiftung des Freistaates Sachsen KdFS, the National Culture and Arts Foundation Taiwan, and the Landeshauptstadt Dresden - Amt für Kultur und Denkmalschutz.

Polymer DMT is supported by the Fonds Darstellende Künste with funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, and the City of Essen / Department of Culture.