The emotional journey of dance: Wen Wei Wang discusses Ballet Edmonton’s e-motion tour with SesayArts

Wen Wei Wang, the celebrated choreographer and Artistic Director of Ballet Edmonton, is known for his innovative works that explore themes of identity and belonging. His latest creation, Persistence of Memory, was born out of the pandemic and is a poignant reflection on our human need for touch and connection.

As part of Ballet Edmonton’s e-motion tour, presented by DanceWorks, Wang’s Persistence of Memory will be presented at Harbourfront Centre’s Fleck Dance Theatre, alongside two other new works by exciting new voices in contemporary ballet: Dorotea Saykaly and Diego Ramalho. BLACK MOON by Saykaly is a mythic exploration of desire and faith, while Ramalho’s Valei-me is a contemplation of music and identity.

In our conversation, we discussed how Wen Wei Wang became a dancer; the significance and evolution of Persistence of Memory; and why it fits with the admittedly different BLACK MOON and Valei-me. Join us as we discover what drives his innovative choreography – and why he’s so happy to bring it to Toronto audiences.

SM: Let’s start with you. What would you like readers to know about you and what led you to pursue a career in dance? 

WWW: Dance entered my life at the age of six when I first saw a ballet performance in my hometown Xi’an, China.  I clearly remember it was the story of a beautiful girl running away to a mountain where her hair turned white. A soldier eventually found her and brought her back to her village, and they fell in love. That was the first ballet I saw, and I will always remember returning home to borrow my mother’s white silk scarf to put around my head.  Then I demonstrated in front of my family and friends the steps I could recall from the beautiful solo I had seen the white-haired girl dance. Of course, the ballet I saw was actually called The White Haired Girl. It was created during the Cultural Revolution. It was then I knew I wanted to be a dancer. 

In 1978, I began dancing professionally in China. I came to Canada in 1991 and joined the Judith Marcuse Dance Company and after two years, I was invited to dance with Ballet BC where I stayed for seven years. In 2000, I received the Clifford E. Lee Choreographic Award from the Banff Centre, and in 2003 founded my own contemporary company Wen Wei Dance. Wen Wei Dance has toured across Canada and internationally.  In 2018, I was offered the position of Artistic Director with Ballet Edmonton. 

SM: Persistence of Memory was created amid the 2020 pandemic, and initially created as a film and reimagined for the stage. What changes were necessary to reimagine the work to be performed live on stage? 

WWW: The movement did not need to change for the stage; it was a fully formed piece. The production elements needed to be added for the stage with our lighting designer. Adding all the dimensions necessary to present work to a live audience versus making a studio film. These are quite different production needs.  The piece we are touring has changed from 32 to 23 minutes to be part of this mixed programme.

SM: What would you like audiences to know about Persistence of Memory, and what are you most eager for them to experience? 

WWW: Persistence of Memory was created during the pandemic when we had no access to our family, friends or audiences. We decided to stay together, working and creating as a group. The company formed a closed cohort. We saw no one but each other, our ED and our filmmaker. We had a very small world for quite a long time. Our studio became a place of safety where we explored the idea of our need for human contact. I could see how literally billions of people were separated from each other, isolated in their own spaces.  For us, at least, we could use our art to keep us connected; it helped ease the distance between us.  It kept us sane and hopeful that this would eventually end. This work is a true expression of what we all lived together in that first year. All the uncertainty, the feelings of loss and the disconnection from our community. It is like our diary.  I want audiences to recall how they felt when they were told to stay away from grandparents, family, and friends, to remember how they came to realize how much they need each other. I hope they connect to that because it is something we all have in common. 

SM: What makes the three works on the e-motion tour, Persistence of Memory, Diego Ramalho’s Valei-me and Dorotea Saykaly’s BLACK MOON a particularly good combination for a triple bill, in your opinion? 

WWW: The three pieces are very different from each other. From the choreographer’s individual voice to the unique vocabulary of each creator, this program showcases the range of different styles of both the vision and vocabulary. 

Diego Ramalho’s Valei-me explores Brazilian music. It’s rhythmic and passionate and really reflects who he is and where he came from – the sounds that shaped him and his love of dance. His movement vocabulary is regional – it is his personal voice. 

Dorotea’s BLACK MOON is so unique and interesting: she borrows ideas from Japanese butoh to Greek myths. Her aesthetic is really effective, and the movement is fresh; it’s very precise, very detailed and artistic.  

My work, Persistence of Memory, is emotionally and physically demanding. It includes groups, solos, and duets. The music is a hybrid of contemporary and classic music. It has that epic feel to it, very grand and emotional. Then, of course, there are our dancers. They are incredibly versatile artists, they can do anything, and they bring all three pieces to life. 

SM: The final word is yours. What would you like to add that I didn’t ask? 

WWW: After two years of the pandemic, we are finally able to come back to the theatre, performing on stage for our audiences where we belong.  It was an emotionally overwhelming time being away from audiences because I almost forgot how much I love live performances. I love to feel the audience there with us,  to see how much they enjoyed the performance we created for them. We are so happy to be here.

Ballet Edmonton’s e-motion tour runs March 7-8, 2023. Reserve tickets on harbourfrontcentre.com.

© Arpita Ghosal, SesayArts Magazine, 2023