When I prepared for the residency program, I reflected on how I continued to perform since graduation, and created based on performing experiences. Without any further academic studies, I started to wonder how creative works came to me. It was necessary to expand my horizon by connecting with international venues and artists, and gaining experiences through practices. As I stepped away from established dancing vocabulary and format, I would be able to express more dimensions precisely and confidently in my works.

During my stay and exploration in Paris, I documented with images and body, wrote bodily journals, learned French, and reorganized various ideas. Flyers included Chinese, English, and French. I felt a different sense of time. Buildings around me were not familiar colors or structures. My skin was irritated due to dry climates. People gathered on the street to chant. I climbed five stories daily to reach my house. Supermarkets were five minutes away by foot, and subways were two minutes away. For nearly six months, I saw, walked, conversed, traveled, participated in workshops, attended performances, went to exhibitions, and experienced daily life. I collected and translated creative materials and inspirations in my dance works.

I liked about Cité Internationale des Arts for combining living spaces and studios. In recent years, I was exploring how creative marks overlapped with living experiences. Creators built works through living experiences, while viewers deconstructed works with lived experiences. Connections and resonance were born as a result. In my living corner, I kept my works and daily objects, such as dyed clothes or damaged mugs. Coexistence as such generated more feelings.

During the residency, I encountered another creator Jan Möllmer. Together, we initiated a new creative idea ("What is Danger?"). It described encounters by two strangers. We tried to take risks, and entered different cultures, life stories, and personalities. We asked: What dangers were possible with strangers? How strange were they to each other? How far could one person go?

Möllmer lived and worked in Wuppertal. He was a visiting dancer at Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, which enriched his dance theater experiences. He also collaborated with choreographer Dimitris Papaioannou to perform on stage at over 30 cities worldwide. He started dancing late, inspired by Pina Bausch’s Kontakthof. With two bodily experiences and creative paths, two strangers tried to understand and explore. Before and during the encounter, bodies activated and deactivated defense systems. They transformed bodies, images, texts, and artistic experienced into dynamics, and generated a hybrid activity with dance, danger, and game.

This motif witnessed how two men from very different backgrounds attempted to define and negotiate a relationship. Viewers wondered if they were brothers, partners, friends, foes, or still strangers. Through interesting ways, they built levels, terms, and conditions in the work.

Author: Chang Chien-hao
Edited: Brix