In March 2025, Fangfei Miao, assistant professor of dance, toured her evening-length dance concert No Other in France. The concert is based on her two-year artistic research on how premodern ritual dance in China and Japan offers new insights into contemporary conceptualizations of womanhood. The team included theatre faculty Sarah M. Oliver (costume design) and Jess Fialko (lighting design), alum James Yunhao Koo (musician and composer; MM ’24, chamber music, percussion), and dance students Reina Kitasato and Caitlyn Wade.
James Yunhao Koo (left), Caitlyn Wade, Reina Kitasato, Sarah M. Oliver, Fangfei Miao, and Jess Fialko in Lyon. Photo: Fuxi Li
“This trip to France benefitted the students’ artistic growth and allowed them to experience the life of a professional dance artist,” Miao noted. “By practicing how to adjust to a new environment, communicating with a new group of people, and performing for global audiences, the students learned through practice how to work as professional international dance artists.”
Reflection by Reina Kitasato (BFA ’25, dance)
Over spring break 2025, I had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Lyon and Paris, France, to perform an evening-length dance duet, No Other, choreographed by Professor Fangfei Miao. The rehearsal process for this piece began in August 2024, and we were able to collaborate with many different artists including a composer/musician, costume designer, and lighting designer.
In France, we performed in two locations, Saint-Julien-Molin-Molette and Lyon. When we arrived in the countryside of Lyon, we were greeted by a loving family who hosted us in their Airbnb. We had a full house for the performance, and we had the opportunity to communicate with the audience members at a reception after the show. They expressed that the piece made them feel validated and that they are deserving of love and connection. I was reminded of how art and dance can connect people of completely different cultures and backgrounds. Even though we did not speak the same language, we were able to share our love for the art form and enjoy the evening together.
After this performance, we had three days to travel and explore Paris. My duet partner Caitlyn and I visited the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay to immerse ourselves in art. The beautiful artworks and sculptures were breathtaking, and I took many notes to use for future dance projects!
Wade (left) and Kitasato at the Louvre in Paris
We had a very fulfilling and fun time in Paris, and then we traveled back to Lyon for our next performance, at the Acte 2 Theatre. On the morning of our performance, we visited the Centre National de la Danse Lyon to learn more about the dance scene in France. We took a tour of the building and dance studios and had a conversation about the different programs and resources they offer to dancers. Learning this information opened up new career opportunities for me and made the prospect of traveling internationally as a dancer seem more realistic and possible. The connections built there were very special, and I hope to be able to connect with the people we met in the future, if I am in France again.
Wade (left) and Kitasato performing Miao’s work No Other in France. Photo: Fuxi Li
Our second performance was also a success, performed for a full house. During these performances, I learned the importance of adaptability and flexibility as a dancer. Each theatre we performed in was different from the other, and we learned to adjust our movement depending on the space, in order to deliver the choreographer’s vision to the audience. It also was a very different experience to perform in France versus the United States, as the audience members have a different way of living and had different perceptions and interpretations of our performance. It truly was a gift to be able to hear the audiences’ reactions and experience performance in a different country. I am also incredibly grateful for all of the connections that were built in the dance community overseas and to everyone who made this trip possible.
Reflection by Caitlyn Wade (BFA ’25, dance)
Traveling to France with the University of Michigan was nothing short of an honor and a privilege. I am so lucky to have been able to bring the art that I love to an entirely new community.
The trip consisted of our team traveling to Saint-Julien Molin-Molette, about an hour outside of Lyon, France. Here, we spent a few days immersing ourselves in their artistic scene and presenting our concert. The people we met were warm and welcoming. The director of MaiOui Danse Arts welcomed us into his home and showed us MaiOui’s studios as well as all of their fascinating costume design equipment. This included an entire room of fabric looms, which were actively being used to create materials.
Our performance was so well received by the community of artists who came to watch us. People ranging from all ages with so many different creative backgrounds all appreciated the art we presented. We hosted a brief Q&A and a reception where we were able to speak with audience members about the performance. To have so many people leave our show continuing conversations about the topics they saw, such as queer and Asian identities, is exactly the impact we were hoping to have.
Wade (left) and Kitasato performing No Other in France. Photo: Fuxi Li
A memory that will always linger with me from this trip will be my interactions with some of the children who came to our performance. The artistic village in Saint-Julien Molin-Molette consists of people with intersecting identities with a notable Mandarin-speaking population. The children I met spoke both French and some Mandarin. I personally don’t speak any French, but I took Mandarin classes in school and was able to converse with them in simple sentences that I could recall from classes. Reina and I danced around and played with several of these kids throughout the reception and were able to bond through art and creativity more than through language.
After this initial performance, our team traveled to Paris for a few days of exploration and immersion in the many different arts presented in all of the most famous museums. It was wonderful to get to expose ourselves to arts other than dance, because so often art is multidisciplinary. It was inspiring and influential to see such highly praised works in person.
After Paris, we traveled to Lyon. In Lyon, we presented our concert for a second time. This show was also incredibly well-received. We had a similar audience, though notably this audience consisted of many more children. I absolutely loved seeing how kids in France specifically are exposed to the arts from such a young age and are taught how to appreciate things like creativity and politically charged content. It encourages critical thinking and questioning our perception of the world, which is something that must be prioritized in the upcoming generations. Following our final performance, we met up at a restaurant for a farewell dinner. As a group, we were able to reminisce about our experiences over the past week and enjoy each other’s presence for one last evening together.
Wade and Kitasato at Notre-Dame de Paris. Photo: Fangfei Miao
The trip as a whole was inspiring and encouraging. I am leaving with new ideas of not only how to look at art but also how to present it. I was able to meet and work with so many different people in many different fields and have benefited immensely from learning alongside them and blending our niches together to create this beautiful final project and enjoy our travels together.