- Chinese Name: 許程崴
- Born: 1988
- Birthplace: Kaohsiung City (Southern Taiwan)
- Did You Know That …?
- In an attempt to gain acceptance to a public high school, Hsu enrolled in a special class for students with dance talent. By coincidence, he discovered his love for dance and thus began his journey as a career dancer.
Hsu Chen-wei is the founder of Hsu Chen Wei Production Dance Company (許程崴製作舞團). Hsu emerged on the world stage as a talented choreographer after staging several productions overseas and received wide acclaim. Today, he also serves as a dancer for Ku & Dancers (古名伸舞團) as well as an independent choreographer.
Since his first encounter with dance during high school, Hsu continued onto studying dance at the Taipei National University of the Arts. During his academic years, Hsu won several prizes in dance competitions and received scholarships to perform overseas and showcase his productions such as "A Wonder Place (想去的地方)” and "The Sacrifice of Roaring (禮祭).”
In particular, his participation in the 2014 World Dance Alliance Global Summit in France got him to re-think and re-define the aesthetics and identity of Taiwanese dance. Since then, Hsu has been focusing on exploring and creating dance performances that can represent Taiwan.
In 2015, Hsu initiated the "My Body Project” and underwent intensive physical training for four months as part of a venture to develop new concepts and aesthetics of his own.
He then produced "The Little Tiny Kingdom (小小小國度)” that explores contemporary issues relating to population displacement, cultural diversity, and ethnicity. The production premiered in Taipei with the support of the "Young Stars, New Vision” program launched by the National Culture and Arts Foundation (國藝會).
In the same year, Hsu joined international dance festivals in Beijing and Hawaii, where his performances were lauded. To share his ideas through dance, Hsu returned to Taiwan and founded his own troupe, hoping his aesthetics will be seen and understood by more people.
In 2016, "The Sacrifice of Roaring,” which took inspiration from Taiwanese rituals of life and death, was selected to perform at the 69th Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The expression of Taiwanese values, culture, and approach to deities through movement received high praise from the British press.
Hsu noted that Taiwan remains his base because it was where he started dancing, and he hopes his troupe will one day become like Cloud Gate Dance Theatre (雲門舞集) and Legend Lin Dance Theatre (無垢舞蹈劇場), performing not only for audiences in Taiwan but also for audiences around the world.