Wind Dance Theatre was founded by Wu I-Fang and Mickey Mi in 2002. Wu is the former principal dancer and rehearsal director of Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, and Mi has been a theatre producer for over a decade.
Devoting Wu’s career to dance performance for over two decades, he firmly believes that “dance is not meant to be ‘understood,’ but enjoyed. Just like a painting, you can simply feel it, be touched by it, and enjoy it.” At the age of 40, he created Wind Dance Theatre, a non-profit organization that focuses on combining dance with different forms of art, as well as promoting the essence of dance in daily life.
Prior to Wind Dance Theatre, Wu worked with Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan as its principle dancer. During his eighteen years with Cloud Gate, he has performed hundreds of dance presentations both domestically as well as internationally. Wu has exhausted all the leading male roles in Cloud Gate Dance Theatre’s repertoire, including his most impressive and memorable role, The God of the Clouds of Nine Songs, which was created for him specifically. The New York Times reviewed The God of the Clouds of Nine Songs as a “spectacular dance”.
As the Artistic Director of Wind Dance Theatre, Wu views dance as a natural movement embodied in everyone’s spirit. He advocates that everybody can enjoy dance; not only through being the audience of a dance performance but also by dancing in daily life for fun. He actively pursues this goal through two simultaneous routes: In their annual production Wind Dance Theatre integrates the strength of artists from various disciplines and creates innovative dance performances that reveal the potential of art and human development. At the same time, to promote the concept of dance as a daily exercise, Wu customizes learning material for virtually every level of society, from students, to corporations, and communities. Wind Dance Theatre also works with the government at numerous events to assist in promoting cultural activities.
Since its debut, “Wu I-Fang Solo” (2003), Wind Dance Theatre has produced numerous productions including “Encounter” (2004), “Love to Dance Love to Play” (2005), “Lives” (2006) “Optic Fun” (2007), all receiving positive reviews:
“Wu I-Fang Solo”
“He is able to transform the simplest elements into infinite movements.”
-Ming Shang Daily
“Wu I-Fang’s performance is a force of nature: powerful as a hurricane yet gentle as a breeze in mid-summer night. When he finishes a series of rapid dance movements and comes to a still pose, his core muscles reverberate as a crop of fish swimming, jumping up and down under the light reflection.”
-China Times
“His performance successfully integrates movements from ballet, modern dance, marshal art, tai-chi… it feels like watching a spectacular picture composed by body flow… The way he applies theatrical elements such as visual design, sound effects and drama into his production makes the performance entertaining and memorable.”
-Performance Art Magazine
“Encounter”
“The 12th Quadriga demonstrates an artistic depth through the intricate juxtaposition of Russian religious ritual and traditional oriental tragedy.”
-New York World Daily
“A perfect combination of eastern philosophy and western elements.”
-New York World Daily
“Love to Dance Love to Play”
“Applying simple rhythm in conjunction with playful movements, the dance leads the audience into a virtual, imaginative space where intuitive desire is expressed. With the intertwined impact from time, place and energy, the performance subtly allows the audience to experience the variety and complexity of human interaction.”
-Ming Shang Daily
“Lives”
“The unbelievably soft and gentle body movements successfully express the role of each character, resulting in a perfect adaptation of a classic literature.”
-China Times
“Optic Fun”
“The beauty of dance combines with digital illusion resulting in a magical visual effect… his performance leads the audience through a magnificently scenic trip.”
-China Times
To Wind Dance Theatre, arts education is the passage to a better society, and therefore should be accessible to all. This concept is materialized through their productions— a series of dance performances that can be enjoyed by a wide range of audiences: from urban sophisticates to rural farmers, from CEOs to children, and from Taipei to the world.
Wind Dance Theatre
Founder & Artistic Director: Wu, I-Fang
Co-founder & Executive Producer: Mi, Mickey
Technical Director: Wang, Austin
Internet Support: Wei, Jill, Lee, Hong-Wei
Artistic Consultant: Wu, Jing-Jyi
Production Consultants: Wen, Huei-Wen, Wang, Wen-Yi
Linguistic Consultant: Rodney Grolman
Literature Advisor: Sable Mi
