Art in the air: BANDALOOP turns side of Moss Arts Center into stage collegiatetimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from collegiatetimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Rachel Howard December 13, 2020Updated: December 16, 2020, 5:09 pm
Beijing Dance/LDTX performs “Arc,” choreographed by Adiya. Photo: Yin Peng
By her own description, choreographer Philein Wang is used to making “diplomatic” art. In fact, in 2013 her ZiRu Dance company won a $50,000 grant from the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Embassy in Beijing for the purpose of diplomacy, funding the first of 10 tours to China over five years. The dances Wang took there were family-friendly and emphasized human beauty and cross-culturalism, though they did not explicitly address racism.
But the events of this year have changed her. First came COVID-19, then she learned of anti-Asian harassment directed at close friends, then the police killing of George Floyd. It gave Wang a renewed sense that her efforts in the dance world should speak up.