GUTS

JIN XING DANCE THEATRE (2015)

Choreography, Music & LightsEmanuel Gat

Choreographic AssistanceMichael Loehr & Milena Twiehaus

Performers Dai Shao Ting, Ding Yi, Gao Qin Qin, Han Bin, Li Hao Cheng, Liu Xiao Tong, Pang Kun, Sun Zhen Zhen, Wang Jun, Wu Hai Qi, Zhou Wei

ProductionPurple Star Culture & Communication Co., Ltd., Jin Xing Dance Theatre

World PremiereMay 2015 – Shanghai, China

Performance HistoryJincheng Art Palace, Chengdu, China – Beijing Exhibition Center, Beijing, China – Kampnagel, Hamburg, Germany – Yunnan Grand Theatre, Kunming, China – Pingshan Grand Theatre, Shenzen, China – Macao Arts Festival, Macao Cultural Centre, Macao, China – Minnan Grand Theatre, Xiamen, China – Hangzhou Contemporary Music Festival, Zhejiang Conservatory of Music, Hangzhou, China – Yue Theatre, Hangzhou, China – National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing, China – Qionghua Theatre, Foshan, China – Esplanade Theatre, Singapore, Singapore

PhotographyDeng Xi Yang

This work explores the social nature of humans: joining groups, facing rejection, attempting integration, and continuously navigating small collectives while maintaining individuality. [...] If we select a performer and focus on their journey, we can immerse ourselves in their experience. [...] Through their performance, we too undergo a social baptism of sorts.

In the end, both the choreographer and the dancers earn the applause: Gat for his courage in reinterpreting contemporary dance, and the dancers for their athletic prowess in such a demanding choreography.

The movements in Guts are complex and varied, but the choreographer uses lighting and stage direction to transform the non-figurative movements of the dancers into interesting patterns. Meanwhile, the music becomes a character in the piece, not just a simple accompaniment.