By Lucy Komisar

In this graceful, inventive piece by choreographer Wang Junjian, Beijing’s Tuyi Dance Theater presents a plane journey—landing, preparation, and takeoff.

The tarmac is “under the clouds” and the dancers sometimes imitate planes, moving at angles, falling and rising as if they were flying.

They seem buffeted by winds, and twist and tumble to the ground, then climb on others to rise again.

The music is eclectic: pop, electronic, strings, African drums and whistles. The dancing is ethereal.

Wang explains the metaphor: the dancers’ moves show how social behavior is made and unmade. The piece explores the social barriers that exist among people, the anxiety and phobia, the loss of self-confidence where, instead, people should integrate with others.

For the metaphor, the dancers are planes twisting turning

They jump and sway and turn on the ground. They are fighting the issues of life.

A dancer walks away from people on ground.

Wang wonders what happened to the child with wonder before rules were imposed.

We see the answer when dancers are in city clothes. A man raises his fist for power, another uninvited touches a woman on the rear.

Two men in gray suits are tied to each other around their necks; one pulls the other aggressively. Three men are choked with ties.  

 But as travelers with different trajectories draw their own maps, body language shows individuals find their own ways to connect to others.

Then they seem to be flying together.

« Voyager sous les nuages »/ voyage under the clouds » Tuyi Dance Theater, founded by Li Shikun in Beijing in 2018. Choreographer Wang Junzhu. Director Wang Meng. Alya L’Espace, 31bis rue Guillaume Puy, Avignon July 2 to 10, 2024. Runtime 1hr. See video at the end of link. Festival OFF Avignon.