Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center is hosting a performance by the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan on Friday, Jan. 29 and Saturday, Jan. 30 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Jan. 31 at 2 p.m., at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre presents a production titled “Rice,” which raises awareness about conservation through rice cultivation.
(photo by Liu Chen-hsiang)

The group will premiere a work titled “Rice.” Cloud Gate Dance Theatre transforms ancient aesthetics into original performances that are a modern celebration of motion. Created by founder and artistic director Lin Hwai-min, “Rice” is a human drama that calls attention to the need to protect the earth by portraying the life cycle of rice cultivation from death to rebirth, devastation and resurrection. Rice was inspired by the landscape and story of Chihshang in the East Rift Valley of Taiwan – a farming village that was once  tainted by chemical fertilizer but is now a major rice-growing region.

To create the setting for “Rice,” a cinematographer spent two years on location capturing how rice is cultivated, including flooding, sprouting, harvesting and the burning of fields. Video images of clouds reflected in the water, rice swaying in the wind and fire ravaging the fields are essential visual elements of the production. Immersed in the environment, the Cloud Gate dancers enact a human drama parallel to the life cycle of rice.

Tickets start at $34. The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is located at 135 N. Grand Ave. For information and tickets, call (213)972-0711, or visit  www.musiccenter.org/cloudgate.