Emptiness:
Flying through molasses
︎ Jan-Mar, 2025
I collaborated as a multimedia artist on Emptiness: Floating Through Molasses, a Dance-theatre work that explores the concept of emptiness as both a physical and psychological duality. In partnership with the director, I developed Digital art elements that merged seamlessly with the choreography, enhancing the performance through projection mapping, live tracking, and laser light design.
During our R&D period in London, we experimented with real-time projections and interactive media, integrating movement and technology to deepen the piece’s exploration of space and perception. In the premiere at Dance City Newcastle, I created laser light as a shapeless border, evoking the infinite and expanding the choreography’s spatial dynamics. This interplay between light, movement, and sound created an immersive experience, amplifying the work’s themes of presence, transformation, and the tension between holding on and letting go.
The performance gracefully transitions between humor and introspection, reflecting on the complexities of human experience. With floating balloons and digital visuals bridging the realms of nothingness and existence, Emptiness: Floating Through Molasses invites audiences into a world where desires and fears shift unpredictably—much like the unpredictable currents of life itself.
Read a review of the work here.
Credit
Director&Choreographer: Tong XiaoYi, Jacob Gale
Dancers: Tong XiaoYi , Gregorio Dragoni
Multimedia Design: Ke Peng
Lighting Design: Tristan Aplin
Photography: Roseline Zhang, Burnt Zhou
Performed at Dance City Newcastle
06 Mar, 2025
