Sin Cha Hong, Artistic Director, Laughing Stone Dance Theater

Sin Cha Hong is a choreographer as well as a dancer, vocalist and writer. She is one of the most influential artists of Korea in the 20th century. Ou Jian Ping, the director of foreign dance study at Nation dance theater of China and a dance critic, selected her as the flower of western avant-garde, as rooted in the eastern tradition. When she performed in Germany in 1998, Weimar OTZ newspaper called her the Pina Bausch of Korea.

She worked in New York for over 20 years and founded her Laughing Stone Dane Theater there. She worked with John Cage, Yugi Takahashi, Margaret Leng Tan, Nam June Park and many other artists. She was a guest professor at the Beijing dance academy of China and an exchange professor with Fulbright scholarship and gave lectures at universities in many different countries. She came back to Korea for good in 1993 and later on she lectured choreography at the Korean National University of Arts as a guest professor. She founded Ansung Juksan International Festival in 1995.

She was awarded The woman of today prize in 1982, Joon-ang culture prize in 1989, Kim Sonkeun prize in 1996, Wookyung art prize in 1997 and Grand culture prize of Korea in 2003. She received many other prizes from NEA (National Endowement for the Arts, Hawaii State Foundation of Culture and the Arts Asian Council), Japan Foundation and other organizationas in USA and Japan. Her book, "Excuse for the freedom," has been a bestseller in Korea and translated in Chinese and Japanese.

Laughing Stone Dance Theater is founded by Sin Cha Hong in New York in 1981. It was re-made with Korean dancers after Sin Cha Hong returned to Korea in 1994. The philosophy of the company is to broaden the existence of audiences as well as performers beyond the borders of external life that we can see through our eyes by transforming the impression of the art and nature and the harmony of spirit into the art of dance based on minimal movements. The company has performed throughout the world.

 

Sin Cha Hong in "Godot"