At Palmisano Park on Chicago’s South Side, the twinkling sound of wind chimes and cymbals carried through the breeze as dancers Irene Hsiao and Peter Wong performed before a crowd, inviting spectators to become part of the performance.
Columbia senior dance major Areli Ramirez served as assistant producer for “Guardians of the Earth and Sky,” an interactive production inspired by the ancient Chinese philosophical text “Huainanzi.”
As Hsiao, the performance director, broke away from Wong, she placed the wind chimes she carried into the hands of the audience members.
“It kind of feels like I’m stepping into the real world outside of the Dance Center,” Ramirez said. “I’m outside. I’m working with other dancers who are from the Chicago community, and it opens me up to other people, too.”
Ramirez was working at the Dance Center on campus when producing director Roell Schmidt asked if she wanted to work on the performance this summer. Although it took some adjusting to the new role, Ramirez said that it was a good learning experience.
“I felt a little lost to be honest, because I didn’t know, outside of the Dance Center, what to expect, because everything for me over there is kind of laid out,” Ramirez said. “Here, I have to kind of be ready and aware of what’s going on around me, and be really open to if something needs to be moved or helped with.”
Schmidt said that it was important to give students opportunities so they can work directly with artists and generate new ideas and projects.
“The dance majors at Columbia are so innovative and so creative, and we know that once the door opens for them, they’re going to have such a profound impact on the dance ecosystem in Chicago and beyond.” Schmidt said.
The performance, now in its third year, explores the four mythological guardians believed to protect the world: the White Tiger of the West, the Black Tortoise of the North, the Azure Dragon of the East and the Vermilion Bird of the South. Prior to the performance, guests had a chance to color fans representing each deity on them.
For its opening day on Saturday, July 11, the crowd was guided along Palmisano Park in the Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago. Before embarking on the journey, storyteller Penny Li brought the group around a tree while telling the story of the first Chinese woman to come to the US in 1834, Afong Moy, who was exhibited as “The Chinese Lady” to promote imported goods.
When “Guardians of the Earth and Sky” first began, Hsiao said that there wasn’t any mention of Chinese-American heritage. For its second year, Hsiao felt that when talking about Asian art, there was an emphasis on the past rather than the present.
People often associate Asian arts and antiquities “with something that happened thousands of years in the past in a very remote place, and think they have actually nothing to do with living art, living people and the people who live in this country,” Hsiao said.
Hsiao came up with “Guardians of the Earth and Sky”’ in 2024 while she was a residential artist for the Heritage Museum of Asian Art. She had been doing research on dragons since 2024, the year of the dragon. While researching, she learned about the four guardians.
Li met Hsiao at the Heritage Museum of Asian Art while Li was working there. She joined the performance once Hsiao approached her because of her time leading tours at the museum. Li said that as a Chinese immigrant, she really appreciated the fact that the program even exists.
“I also invited my Chinese friends to the show, they were born and raised in China,” Li said. “We never imagined our ancient story could be told like this, so organic, so spiritual.”
At the first performance in Bridgeport, Li guided the group towards the four deities, who were scattered along the park. Audience members were introduced to the White Tiger, played by Amanda Maraist, then the Black Tortoise, played by Darling “Shear” Squire, the Azure Dragon, played by Peter Wong, and the Vermilion Bird, played by Hsiao herself.
All performances were accompanied by musicians Paige Brown on vocals and Hunter Diamond on percussion.
The show concluded with all four of the deities gathering together and dancing with one another. Volunteers part of the program joined in on the dancing, inviting members of the audience to join them.
“Without the presence and the talent of all these people who I brought in,” it couldn’t have happened, Hsiao said. “They really embody the qualities that I think the guardians represent. I don’t think anyone is acting, they really are.”
“Guardians of the Earth and Sky” will be performed again on July 19 at Ping Tom Park and on July 26 at Jackson Park. More information can be found on Eventbrite.
This story has been updated to include the correct title of Areli Ramirez.
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