Inspired by the evocative work of Percy Bysshe Shelley, Dance Ozymandias recently premiered in New York City, offering an immersive dance performance that delves into the themes of time and legacy. This creative and visionary collaboration left a lasting impression on the audience.
Exploring the Passage of Time Through Dance
Dance Ozymandias invites viewers to ponder the inevitable passage of time and its impact on human achievements. The choreography unfolds as dancers sculpt the very essence of time, creating intricate patterns of motion that reflect the rhythms of life and decay. As the performance progresses, it becomes clear that time is the only constant, a silent witness to the cycles of creation and destruction.
Eva Caiyi Feng: The Visionary Behind the Performance
Eva Caiyi Feng, a multi-media artist with a rich background in integrated digital media, psychology, and philosophy, leads the project as the creative director, producer, choreographer, set designer, and premier performer.
“My reading on ‘Ozymandias,’ a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet P.B. Shelley, directly linked with my perception of time as a creator, destroyer, and preserver of the universe,” says Eva. “I am interested in the flow of time as a vessel for everything—creation, destruction, preservation—so in the set course of time during the namesake dance Ozymandias, I want to create movements that are abstracted from the widest range of objects and events, reflecting the nature of everything.”
Eva’s conceptualization process is meticulous, ensuring every movement and element enhances the narrative. “As a dance project, the main challenge is to choreograph. It’s my first time setting a piece on this many dancers. I loved to see how it all came together like piecing out a puzzle,” Eva reflects. “At the beginning of the dance, dancer Hannah slowly raises one arm and walks across the stage, while the still statues around her change shape as she passes by. This represents the inevitable and ever-present force of time. The other dancer—me—tries to attack and prevent the procession of time, but Hannah continues pressing on undisturbed. In the end, Hannah duets and interacts with every other dancer, and we all end up lying in a puddle at her feet. Time defeats everything.” Eva’s choreography is a testament to her artistic vision and technical skill, creating a performance that is both thought-provoking and visually stunning.
The set design also follows this theme. “The overcasting dome that casts overhead creates a pressing/oppressive feeling and also an awareness of something sublime above. The projection of flowing golden sparkles reinforces the idea of flowing time. The costume design’s color palette and style follow ‘wasteland punk’ to match ‘Ozymandias’s’ description of ‘antique land,’ ‘stone,’ and ‘desert.'”
Junru Chen: Blending Fashion and Technology in Visual Design
Multimedia artist and visual designer Junru Chen brings her expertise in fashion design, interactive art, and technology to the project. Her design incorporates innovative materials and technologies that dynamically interact with the dancers, enhancing the visual storytelling of the performance.
“For Dance Ozymandias, I used Touch Designer to develop a visual program that reflects the fluidity of time and the effects of weathering, aligning with the theme. I envisioned the performers as particles on a vast canvas, illuminating them with golden light that pulses in sync with the dance’s rhythm and tension,” Junru explains. “The projections were mapped across the entire stage using two Optoma short-throw projectors via MadMapper. A dome-like filter transformed the space, creating an immersive, ambient environment that deeply engages both the performers and the audience.”
Junru’s set design transcends traditional setups by being highly interactive and responsive. “I view the set for Dance Ozymandias as a large-scale visual artwork that transcends traditional audio-reactive setups by being highly interactive and responsive under my control,” she says. “Instead of a conventional stage that separates the audience from the dancers, I designed the performing area to act as a vast container that envelops everyone, merging spectators and performers into a single, unified space. This design enhances the audience’s understanding of the themes by physically and symbolically breaking down barriers, reflecting the poem’s exploration of impermanence and shared human experience.”
Chester Zhong: Capturing the Essence Through Cinematography
The Director of Photography and Post Production, Chester Zhong captured dance Ozymandias with a careful balance of lighting, composition, and camera movement to visually translate the themes of time and movement.
“My main strategy was to exploit the idea of contrast in terms of both light and temporality,” says Chester. “I wanted to capture and emphasize the unique and extreme play of light and shadow, which masterfully carves out the dancers’ dynamic bodies. The camera becomes a dancer among its subjects, capturing various perspectives with another dimension of dynamics.”
Post production plays a crucial role in enhancing the storytelling of the live performance, says Chester. “With maximum creative freedom over the shot footage, in post production we can reconstruct the performance with only the best materials, and further manipulate its rhythm, exposure, and color, resulting in a work that is both loyal to and drastically different from the live performance.”
An Invitation to Reflect and Engage
Dance Ozymandias is not just a performance; it is an invitation to reflect on one’s own legacy and place in the vast expanse of history. The show poses thought-provoking questions: What mark will you leave on the sands of time? How will you be remembered when the echoes of your footsteps fade into silence?
“The goal of ‘Ozymandias’ is to provoke contemplation and introspection,” says Eva. “We want the audience to leave with a deeper understanding of their own existence and the timeless essence of life.”
Performers: Caiyi Eva Feng, Lilly Gallego, Isabel Heard, Sophie Jivotoski, Hannah Petersen, Rebekah Petersen.
A Celebration of Creativity and Innovation
The collaborative efforts from Eva Caiyi Feng, Junru Chen, and Chester Zhong bring together a unique blend of digital technology, fashion, and cinematic artistry, creating a truly unforgettable experience.
“We are excited to share this journey with our audience,” says Eva. “It’s a celebration of creativity and innovation, and we hope it inspires others to explore the limitless possibilities of artistic expression.”
An extract of the dance Ozymandias
Creative Director / Producer / Choreographer: Caiyi Eva Feng.
Director of Photography and Post Production: Chester Yi Zhong.
Set Designer: Junru Chen, Caiyi Eva Feng.
Visual Designer: Junru Chen.
Music: Roger Shao.
Costume Designer: Cyndi Yiqing Huang.
Video Editor: Esther Ruiting Liu.
Colorist: Sandra Zhiying Huang.
Special thanks to Jessy Fangning Dong, Zhenming Liu, Ivan Yilun Song, Phoebe Shiyu Zuo
Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam
