Dou Dou Huang
Dancer and Choreographer

Dou Dou Huang is the Artistic Director and Principal Dancer of the Shanghai Song and Dance Ensemble. Although only 27, he has been at the helm of the ensemble since 1995.

Born in Zhejiang, China in 1977, Dou Dou Huang entered the Beijing Academy of Dance at the age of 18. He has been granted numerous awards by the Chinese government as well as international recognition and awards. He has been designated a “First Class National Artist” in China, a highly coveted consideration, and his performances, as well as choreography, have been acclaimed all over the world.

Combining ancient, classical and contemporary traditions and techniques, Dou Dou Huang is celebrated throughout China on stage and television as a dance icon – by audiences of all ages. He has been singularly responsible for moving Chinese dance into the 21st century with a mesmerizing talent on the stage as well as a fresh and exciting vision in choreography.

He began his work as a choreographer in 1998 with ‘Spirit of Martial Arts’ which was first performed in China in 1999. In 2000 he choreographed and performed the world premiere of ‘Six Dance Imageries from the Zhou Dynasty’, a work commissioned by the eminent composer Tan Dun. In 2001 he choreographed ‘Chinese Go” for the Vail International Dance Festival, chaired by former U.S. President Gerald Ford.

In 2002 as Dou Dou Huang came to the attention of the international media beyond the dance world, Time Magazine described him as a “national sensation” saying he was “reinventing mainland dance”. The same year he also appeared on the cover of Dance Spirit magazine with an article called ‘Flying to the Peak of Dance: Chinese Star Huang Dou Dou’. More recently, he appeared as principal guest artist in a world premiere with the Buglisi-Foreman Dance Group at the Joyce Theatre in New York and received high praise from audiences and critics alike.

Some of his most notable works have been: ‘Dancing Dancing I’ in which he combined modern multi-media, modern acoustics and optic technology with dramatic performance, performed as part of the International Opera Master Class performances at the Shanghai Conservatory, and ‘Golden Door and Silver Threads”, a large-scale performance which won the Grand Prize at the Second National Minority Literary Festival. The performance had its international debut in July 2002 at the Champs Elysee Theatre in Paris in China’s bid to host the 2010 World Expo. In September of 2003 his original work ‘Fusion’ was performed at the Shanghai Grand Theatre and in October, Dou Dou once again collaborated with Tan Dun in the production of “Skin Drumming’ which was performed at the Paris Autumn Art Festival 2003.

In August of 2004, Dou Dou Huang and U.S. dancer Jacques D’Amboise held a joint performance at the Shanghai Grand Theatre called ‘Dancing into the Future’. This special event was organized by the Committee of 100 and was performed with the participation of dancers from both the U.S. National Dance Institute and from the city of Shanghai. The same month, Dou Dou starred in the performance “Chinese Gong Fu’ directed by world famous cinema director Zhang Yi Mou, in the closing dance ceremonies at the Athens Olympic Games. In September 2004 Dou Dou Huang performed ‘Sword Dance’ at the opening ceremony for the International F1 Race Course in Shanghai.

Dou Dou Huang’s original dance ‘Yellow Earth’ was performed in Japan in November of 2004 to great critical acclaim. Dou Dou then traveled to Finland where he collaborated with movie director Marikki Hakola in a new dance movie in which he was the principal choreographer as well as a led actor.
In February of 2005 Dou Dou Huang was awarded a scholarship from the Asian Cultural Association which has lead to the opportunity for further study and research in the United States.

Dou Dou Huang: Awards

1994 Gold Medal – Fourth National Taoli Cup
1995 Gold Medal - Third National Dance Competition
1997 Gold Medal – Pyonyang Art Festival, North Korea
1997 National College Graduate Award for Excellence
1998 Shanghai Top 10 Outstanding Youth Award, Shanghai
1999 100 Excellent Young Artists Award – National Culture League
1999 Silver Medal – Third International Ballet and Modern Dance Competition, Japan
1999 National Expert Award – Ministry of Culture (including a State Department stipend)
2000 First Prize – Excellent Small Performances Competition, Shanghai
2000 Best Performer – Eleventh Baiyulan Drama Awards, Shanghai
2001 Artist Award - Committee of 100 Artist Award, USA
2001 Best Performer - Twelfth Baiyulan Drama Awards, Shanghai
2001 ‘One out of Five Project’ Prize – China Central Publications Bureau
2001 Golden Prize – Second National Minority Literature Performance
2003 Outstanding Contemporary Dancer in mainland China – MTV and CCTV award