The Legend of Nuwa

My final and favorite project at the Beijing Dance Drama & Opera was a ballet called The Legend of Nuwa. It's an ancient Chinese creation myth about the origins of mankind and various power struggles in heaven. Due to the subject matter, I had the incredibly fun opportunity to merge traditional Chinese instruments with a classical orchestra.

This ballet was also my first opportunity for some long form storytelling, so I gave the whole work an overarching theme and tried to squeeze as much mileage out of it as I could. Call it an exercise in theme and variations. I'm particularly fond of the colorful harmonies in Snowfall Tragedies, complex rhythms in The Gods Duel, and elegant string accompaniment in Knowing You.