Asian Voices

This is a mixed-rep ballet. Mixed-rep ballets are several unrelated short ballets with intermissions, similar to a collection of short stories.

Yue Yin, Artistic Director and Choreographer, is an internationally recognized performer, choreographer and the founder and artistic director of YY Dance Company (YYDC). She began her training in China at the prestigious Shanghai Dance Academy and completed her artistic studies at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts where she received her MFA in 2008. In 2018, Yin founded YYDC, a non-profit dedicated to the teaching, production and performance of her original choreographic work. Yue’s work embodies her signature FoCo Technique™, a dynamic fusion of Chinese dance, folk and contemporary movement language into YYDC’s performances, choreographic commissions and educational endeavors.

Yue was the recipient of the 2021 Harkness Promise Award. This prestigious award recognizes her innovation in choreography and education. She was the winner of  Hubbard Street Dance Chicago 2015 International Commissioning Project, winner of the 2015 BalletX Choreographic Fellowship, and winner of Northwest Dance Project’s 5th Annual Pretty Creatives International Choreographic Competition in 2013. Yue’s work has been commissioned from acclaimed companies as well as other companies and organizations such as Gibney Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, Boston Ballet, Philadelphia Ballet, Limon Dance Company, Alberta Ballet,  Balletto Teatro di Torino, Peridance Contemporary Dance Company, USC Kaufman  School of Dance, Tisch School of The Arts, Rutgers University, Point Park University, Western Michigan University, Juilliard School for Dance and more.

Ma Cong has been widely recognized by the dance world as a passionate, bright, and inspired rising star choreographer. Critics have described his choreography as being powerful and passionate.

Ma is the Resident Choreographer of Tulsa Ballet.  Having started his dance career at the Beijing Dance Academy, where he trained in the art of Chinese classical dance, Ma soon discovered his love for ballet and went on to graduate with honors. Ma danced with The National Ballet of China from 1995 until 1999, prior to joining Tulsa Ballet.  During his 12-year tenure at Tulsa Ballet, he quickly rose to the rank of Principal Dancer, performing works by John Cranko, Nacho Duato, Jiri Kylián, William Forsythe, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Ben Stevenson, and many others, in addition to the 19th century classics.  Ma was one of the most celebrated and loved Artists in the company’s history.

As a choreographer, Ma launched his career with Folia, created on Tulsa Ballet in 2004.   He went on to create several more works for the company and was named Tulsa Ballet’s Resident Choreographer in 2009. Shortly thereafter, he choreographed an original piece entitled Calling for Houston Ballet II, after which Ma was described by Houston’s En Pointe as having “swiftly risen to become one of America’s most exciting choreographers.”  In March of 2010, ABT principal dancer Michele Wiles performed his work In the moment at YAGP’s Grand Gala in New York City. He has created many original works for Houston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, BalletMet, Smuin Ballet, Richmond Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, Singapore Dance Theatre, Queensland Ballet Australia, National Ballet of China, and many others worldwide.

Among his many personal and professional achievements, Ma was named one of the “25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine in 2006 for his dancing and choreography works as well as The Choo-San Goh award in 2007. His work Melodia, was presented in Grand Gala at Pesaro International Choreographic Festival and Miami International Ballet Competition Gala. In 2008, Ma was the winner of the 21st Century Choreographic competition and also received the “Audience Favourite” and received the “Editor’s Choice Award” from Pointe Magazine.  In 2013, Ma was named as one of Joffrey Ballet’s Choreographers of Color Award winners.

More recently, Ma Cong has continued to have world premiere works presented internationally. He recently created his first original full-length ballet, The Crane Whisperer, for The National Ballet of China, which made its German debut in July 2017.  He also created a brand new Four Seasons for the company, which premiered at The 2nd China International Ballet Season.  Ma made his Broadway debut while working with Julie Taymor on the revival of David HenryHwang’s Tony Award winning play M. Butterfly, starring Clive Owen. In 2018, Glass Figures, his most recent work for Tulsa Ballet, premiered at the Joyce Theater in New York and received rave reviews from audiences and critics alike.

A former dancer with New York City Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater, Edwaard Liang has built an international reputation as a choreographer. Over the last decade, he has created work for the Bolshoi Ballet, Houston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Kirov Ballet, New York City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Shanghai Ballet, Singapore Dance Theatre and Washington Ballet.

Born in Taipei, Taiwan and raised in Marin County, California, Mr. Liang began his dance training at age five with Marin Ballet. After studying at the School of American Ballet, he joined New York City Ballet in 1993. That same year, he was a medal winner at the Prix de Lausanne International Ballet Competition and won the Mae L. Wien Award. By 1998, he was promoted to Soloist. In 2001, Mr. Liang joined the Tony Award® winning Broadway cast of Fosse. His performance in Fosse was later televised nationally on PBS’ Great Performances series – “Dance in America: From Broadway: Fosse,” and subsequently released on DVD. By 2002, Mr. Liang was invited by Jiri Kylian to become a member of the acclaimed Nederlands Dans Theater 1.

While dancing with NDT 1, Mr. Liang discovered his passion and love for choreography. Since establishing himself as a choreographer, his works have been performed by dance companies around the world and he has won numerous awards for his choreography including the 2006 National Choreographic Competition.

In 2013, Mr. Liang was named Artistic Director at BalletMet where he continues to choreograph new works for companies both domestically and abroad. In 2017, he received an Emmy® Award for his short dance film, “Vaulted.” In 2018, he created a new ballet with Roberto Bolle for the opening of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland.