International Dance Day has been celebrated on April 29 since it was established in 1982 by the International Dance Committee of the International Theater Institute (ITI). This date commemorates the birth (in 1727) of Jean-Georges Noverre, a dancer and teacher considered the creator of modern ballet.
Every year the ITI commissions a well-known personality from the world of dance to write a message that is read all over the world. The objective of this celebration and of this message is to unite all the dances on this day, to celebrate this art form and show its universality.
The Message for International Dance Day 2023 has been entrusted to the Chinese dancer and choreographer Yang Liping:
“Dance – A way to communicate with the World.
Body language is the most instinctive form of communication humanity has. Already as newborns, we use our hands and feet to perform dance-like gestures, even before we learn to pronounce a word. It is then that the dance of this “primitive language” emerges.
Many things encourage people to dance. In my hometown, my grandmother once told me that dance was a way of thanking the Sun for bringing warmth and light into our lives. When there is a good harvest we dance with joyful hearts in the fields to express our gratitude to the Earth. When we meet someone we love, we dance like a peacock spreading its plumage to win his affection. Even when we get sick we can appeal to mysterious dance rituals to repel the demons of disease. In my world, dance is intricately woven into our life and existence from an early age. Dance has always been the key that opens the communication of human beings with nature and other living beings. There is a saying in my hometown: “If you have legs but you cannot dance, you have wasted your life in vain”.
As far as I am concerned, dance is the same as life and nature: it is its true essence. Some people come into this world to leave offspring, others to enjoy life, and others to seek experiences. In my case, I am an observer of life; I come to see how a flower blooms and withers, how the clouds float and the dew condense… Therefore, all my creative inspiration comes from life and nature: the glow of moonlight, the exhibition of peacock feathers, the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly, the way a dragonfly skims the surface of the water, the way a caterpillar wriggles, the way ants form a line…
Many years ago I went on stage and danced my first choreography, “The soul of the peacock”. The peacock is a creature that in the Eastern World symbolizes the sacrosanct and represents beauty, since its appearance resembles that of the phoenix, with an incarnated posture comparable to that of the dragon.
The dance culture of humanity is abundant in attributes and common points. we found the essence of dance by observing nature, life and all living beings
around us. My country also has a rich dance culture that passionately promotes
like an inheritance. I have staged some traditional primitive dances like Yunnan Impression, Tibetan Riddle, Pingtan Impression and many others, with which people were deeply impressed by their captivating beauty and cultural significance. We inherited all of them from our ancestors, which implies that our efforts are required for them to be preserved and presented to the rest of the world.
Over decades as a dancer I have continued my exploration of the limitless realm of dance and have been invited to create contemporary experimental works such as Under Siege – The Complete Story of Farewell My Concubine and Rite of Spring.
My art is inspired by the nature of my hometown, my personal experience and the deep civilization
Oriental, which is an integral part of world civilization insofar as it provides it with diversity,
wealth and, above all, inspiration. “Learning from nature” and “the Unity of man and the universe” make up the philosophy, wisdom and aesthetics of the East. These doctrines are also the spiritual core of my art. As human beings, we must respect nature, learn from it and harmonize with it, just as the earth, the mountains and the sky do. Dancers and choreographers must listen more carefully to the joys and sorrows of the world using dance to complete the dialogue we have had with nature and life for thousands of years.
Today I will continue to share our dance culture and invite all the dancers in the world who love dance and who express their emotions through it to dance together to convey our love and praise to heaven and earth.
Life never ends and the dance never stops.”
My personal message for all of the dancers:
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