Lin's ‘Rice’ pays visual homage to Asia’s staple grain

Bringing his visually breathtaking and poetically poignant contemporary dance piece “Rice” in front of Seoul audiences for the first time, renowned choreographer Lin Hwai-min will be introducing a whole new way for the audience to conceptualize the significance of even a simple grain of rice.

Having been deemed by some critics as “Asia’s most important choreographer,” Lin is no stranger to intertwining the element of rice into his performances.

Born and raised in Taiwan, Lin’s parents grew up in an era where rice was such a precious agricultural luxury in Asia that children were taught to never take food for granted and to never let even a single grain go to waste. 

Lin, who often refers to the grain as being “holy,” will once again incorporate the theme into his latest dance piece. Using no definitive storyline, the choreographer’s upcoming Cloud Gate Dance Theatre’s production of “Rice,” is entirely dedicated to displaying the wondrous beauty, depth and emotional fortitude of a clan of village farmers and their rice paddies. 

“It (the production) was inspired by a visit to a rice farming village on the eastern coast of Taiwan in the village Chishang,” said Lin, during a press conference held at the LG Arts Center in Seoul on Wednesday.

“The valleys, the mountains, the clouds ... it was such a beautiful scene to see tens of acres of rice fields making waves in the valleys,” he added. “I went there and I was forced to drop everything I was doing immediately ... I decided to do some (field) work to honor the villagers.”

So compelled by the beauty of the village and the dedication of its farmers in their upkeep of the land’s expansive rice paddies, Lin was determined to translate his experiences to the stage.

The choreographer requested a professional photographer friend of his to photograph one of the village’s rice plots over a period of two years in order to fully capture of essence of the rice fields throughout the seasons and farming stages.

“We discovered the cycle of rice is actually parallel to human life,” he said.

“The piece is so pure, but it’s that purity that has the power to move people,” Lin says.

Using projection images of the farming village as the stage productions background and foreground, the upcoming contemporary dance piece will feature 23 dancers. The internationally renowned Cloud Gate Dance Theatre is not only the first ever professional dance company in Taiwan, but is also the first contemporary dance company of any Chinese-speaking country.

The company’s dancers are not only specially trained in the art of ballet and modern dance, but also in traditional Asian dance movements, body contortion, meditation and martial arts.

“Rice” will be held on Sept. 11 and 12 at the LG Arts Center in southern Seoul. Ticket prices for the performance range from 30,000 won ($25) to 70,000 won. For details, visit www.lgart.com.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)