Meet Zhihan Yang | Choreographer & Performer & Dance Instructor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Zhihan Yang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Zhihan, what do you attribute your success to?
I have been active in theater, media, film and education in recent years, working with companies such as the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Museum of Art, the Yaya Dance Academy, and the San Musae Cultural Center in the United States. Her recent works include the orchestral trio choreography “THEA MUSGRAVE: Pierrot” (2023), the dance theater “Am I Susan” (2022), the physical theater “XXX” (2022), and the quintet “Gladiola” (2021), dance film “Question” (2022), “Rush” (2021) , “Refresh” (2021) and “Retrospect” (2021).

I am interested in exploring the different meanings and fluidity of things in different cultural contexts in my works; how should we think about simplification in order to return to essence itself. I have a huge interest and passion for dance theatre and dance film. Dance theater is my ideal place, a sacred place for me, where I can bring people into the spiritual home I have created and give them more experiences and emotions to reflect on themselves, people, and the environment. Dance film is a way to present more dimensions and changes through the language of the camera. In this creative process I have honed my technical mastery even more, which is not easy, but I love the challenge. It is in all the challenges that I discover my abilities. I grew up in a professional Chinese dance training background, and yes, I have a love-hate relationship with it. With this experience I have strong physical fundamentals and I am able to quickly learn different styles of dance training; the hard and rigorous training gives me more perseverance and toughness to complete everything; when I am in a learning environment of different cultures, I have a unique way of thinking and perspective on things, which helps me to create from a bigger picture and reflect on the expression of the body in a multicultural context. I think in this process I have evolved into a more adaptable person, especially in the age of the epidemic, when what we have is limited. Very often we do not have a very powerful creative environment and are not idealized to get everything we envisaged, so I am able to gradually tune myself in the limited conditions and make the creation achievable

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The first thing that comes to mind is the influence that music has had on me. Before learning to dance as a child, the first art I was exposed to learning was the piano, and music became my earliest connection to the arts. When I didn’t have much creative inspiration, I would listen to a lot of music, trying to find a place for my thoughts to stay grounded. After studying some music theories, I could gradually find the structure of compositions, and through this kind of thinking, I was able to find the rules of compositional structure in choreography, which inspired me in the method of music choreography.

I have experienced different dance styles and with the knowledge of multiple genres, I can try to blend them together to create my own dance vocabulary. Whether it’s incorporating modern dance with traditional elements, or combining Eastern movement styles with Western thinking, my past experiences have allowed me to explore new artistic territories. It is also the richness of my learning process that I have more choices. I am able to work with a variety of dancers and adapt my choreography to their strengths and abilities, allowing me to move quickly into an effective rehearsal process.

I am fascinated by film, since then, I have been fortunate enough to take courses in dance film and my learning experiences in this discipline have enhanced my ability to use the visual as a narrative tool. I can think in a way of narrative and structure to include elements to the creation of the dance, which can help the final presentation of the work to be accurate. Film gives me a strong visual narrative, and I sometimes draw inspiration from imagining camera languages, lighting, and aspects of a scene when creating a piece. I try to incorporate visual elements into the choreography to bring the audience a multi-dimensional, multi-spatial, and multi-sensory experience within the limited space of the current venue.

I was awarded the Double Platinum Award and Overall First Placing at the 2023 Showstopper Dance Competition for Peking Opera Impressions, which I choreographed, performed, taught and collaborated with a group of people, in which I tried out my idea of dance fusion and brought it to the stage of the competition in the United States. In this piece, I used the water sleeves of Chinese classical dance as the basis and medium of performance, based on this, I integrated some contemporary concepts into the fusion. There were some difficulties in the process of such fusion attempts, because in consideration of the water sleeves of the dance has always been known for its unique movements, it was not quite sure that the addition of new movements will affect the original expression, it was actually a very stressful situation to break the impression of the tradition without destroying the unique beauty. But through rehearsals and repetition, I have found a balanced intersection. I have managed to express myself in a more creative way in this piece, incorporating contemporary elements to cover a broader range of themes and intentions. This gives me the opportunity to explore both traditional stories and contemporary concerns, allowing for a greater diversity of dance expression. This fusion will give more space to audiences from different cultural backgrounds and aesthetics, and opens up their curiosity to go through cultural barriers.

I received an Short Dance Film Finalists at Vesuvius International Film Festival and Outstanding Official Selection at 92Y Mobile Dance Film Festival for my dance film Fresh. This film embodies the city of my hometown as it recovers from a pandemic, and the experience of life in the midst of a natural disaster, I hope to present the state of our inner selves in relation to the city. I have always been committed to using art as a means of social engagement, and I hope that dance, as a “useless” art, can do something in this space, or reflect a more realistic social environment and share my views through choreography. In this age of media, where the internet, technology, and images have made information more readily available, I hope that the delivery of media will allow for a more innovative approach, making dance more accessible and relevant in the digital era. I engage with new media and technology while enjoying it to expand the reach of dance and connect with a diverse digital audience.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would take my friends to walk around the ROW DTL where there is an abundance of stores and there is also a flea market there every Saturday. You can find a lot of different styles there, it’s a great environment and I enjoy walking there every time I go!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
One of the things I’m most thankful for growing up is the unconditional support and encouragement I received from my parents, which allowed me to fearlessly pursue my favorite things. On the educational platform, I have definitely had a more professional metamorphosis, and I am grateful to my undergraduate school, Beijing Dance Academy, and graduate school, California Institute of the Arts, where the teachers I met shaped my ideas.

Website: zhihangyangdance.com

Instagram: _zhihanyang_