When dance becomes a living emotional canvas

The costumes in MindScape reflect the same philosophy. Inspired by southern Chinese craftsmanship, the designs incorporate bamboo elements that merge heritage with contemporary aesthetics.

"I once received a gift from Yang Meiqi, a founding member of the Guangdong Modern Dance Company. It was a vest made from small bamboo pieces instead of fabric," recalls Shen.

Bamboo, naturally breathable and cooling, suits the humid climate of southern China such as Guangdong province. Symbolically, it also represents resilience, flexibility and the moral integrity of a scholar in Chinese culture — qualities central to the philosophy behind Mind-Scape, Shen says.

The work is also accompanied by Shen's own writings and visual art. Eight texts written over decades in China, the US and Europe will be released alongside the premiere, reflecting on resilience, joy and observation.

Shen will also release a new book, When the Rose Kisses the White Cloud, named after a poem he wrote in Paris, which reflects his fascination with fleeting beauty and enduring optimism.

"Life contains both pain and joy," he says. "I want people to feel the energy of living fully, to be inspired by the spirit rather than material concerns."

Born in Xiangyin county, Yueyang, Hunan province, in 1968, Shen began training in local opera at age 9, studying singing, dancing, acting, and martial arts. He had already started traditional Chinese painting at 7. In 1989, he turned to modern dance at the Guangdong Dance Academy and became a founding member of the Guangdong Modern Dance Company in 1991. After winning a national choreography award in 1994, he moved to New York on a scholarship and founded Shen Wei Dance Arts in 2000, while continuing to innovate across dance, painting, and filmmaking.

American dancer Zak Ryan Schlegel, 36, who has worked with Shen for 11 years, reflects on the premiere of MindScape: "Bringing this work to the stage feels like opening a collective dream state — a common consciousness." The piece, described by Schlegel as a culmination of Shen's visual, physical, and spiritual vocabularies, expands the choreographer's legacy into a deeply human exploration of interconnectedness.

During rehearsals, dancers were encouraged to explore their inner worlds — memory, emotion, perception, and imagination — to build a shared dimension onstage.

"From feeling sunlight on our faces to recalling memory-triggered visions with closed eyes, the challenge was in meeting ourselves through new lenses and returning to our most intimate perceptions," Schlegel says. "This process shaped the work's living spaces, evolving with each performance."

One moment that resonates deeply with him came during a sextet set to a flute solo. "We become the wind. I feel transported to the New Mexican desert of my ancestors, moving in harmony with the other five. Though we are six onstage, we are one in landscapes of memory," he says.

Collaboration lies at the heart of MindScape. "Connection is the oxygen the dance must breathe. Shared breath and intuition allow us to harmonize emotionally and physically, meeting one another through all our different experiences," he explains. The work becomes not only a performance but also an act of humanity.

Guo Fan, 30, a Guangdong Modern Dance Company dancer since 2019, says: "MindScape is rooted in Eastern philosophy, expressed through an international dance language. Its essence is inward observation — moving with restraint, guided by breath and emotion. Eastern subtlety meets Western physicality; Chinese and international dancers inspire each other, letting philosophy flow beyond borders. For the audience, it's not spectacle — it's a space for reflection, resonance and the quiet power of shared humanity."

"After more than 30 years abroad, Shen Wei returns to the Guangdong Modern Dance Company to create MindScape," notes Xiong Jian, the troupe's director. "This is not only an emotional homecoming but also a reconnection with artistic spirit and history. The production blends movement with poetry, music and visual design into a 'total art' experience. Young dancers, aged 24 to 30, represent a new generation, building a uniquely Chinese contemporary dance language grounded in cultural experience and global awareness."