By Anuradha Shukla
MIS Asia
July 9, 2010

SHANGHAI - Young dancers in Shanghai and New York are preparing for a National Dance Institute production by leveraging Cisco TelePresence.

National Dance Institute is a not-for-profit organisation that uses arts to engage children and motivate them towards excellence. The performers are using the technology to prepare for the production before they meet face-to-face.

SMART CONNECTED LIFE

For the rehearsal, the dancers from Shanghai Children’s Palace and the choreography team leveraged the Cisco TelePresence suite in the Cisco Pavilion at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai. On the other hand, the NDI dancers were in the Cisco TelePresence suite in Cisco’s office in New York.

The performance is called ‘The Red Thread’, and is choreographed by Dou Dou Huang, the popular dancer and choreographer from Zhejiang province in China, and Ellen Weinstein, the NDI’s artistic director. The dancers will perform in New York and Connecticut this month once they are ready.

Anthony Elvey, Pavilion director, Cisco, noted that while the National Dance Institute is using dance to bring diverse cultures together, Cisco is utilising technology to bridge time, geographic and cultural distances.

Cisco TelePresence technology is enabling Cisco to elevate creativity and collaboration to the next level, according to Elvey who added that the company is also changing the way people communicate and learn.

JOINING ART AND TECHNOLOGY

This month, the Shanghai dancers will participate in NDI’s Irene Diamond Summer Institute. Using Cisco TelePresence technology, the dancers and choreographers from Shanghai will also teach elements of Chinese folk dancing to NDI students in New York.

The technology will eventually result in a series of performances by the Shanghai and New York dancers.

“Both the arts and technology open people’s hearts and minds to limitless possibilities,” said Jacques d’Amboise, the legendary dancer and founder of NDI. “Dance is basically a form of expression. The way we move and the timing of the movement are how we express ourselves, and Cisco TelePresence can help ensure that none of this expression is lost. With Cisco’s help, these dancers are able to transcend physical distance to be simultaneously moved by the same beautiful piece of music and elegant movements.”

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