Profile / Dong Jilan
Dong Jilan
Renowned Young Dancer / Principal Dancer of Peacock Contemporary Dance Company
Dong Jilan is a female dancer from the Bai ethnic group, one of China's minority nationalities. At the age of eleven, she was discovered by renowned Chinese dancer Yang Liping for her outstanding dance and singing talents. She joined Yang Liping's dance company and gradually became one of the most senior and accomplished performers in the company, frequently taking on lead roles in Yang's works, including Dynamic Yunnan, Peacock, Under Siege, Peacock in Winter, and The Rite of Spring.
Over more than two decades on stage, the dance productions in which she has performed or starred have accumulated over 2,000 performances, with her starring works alone touring more than 200 shows worldwide. She has never received a formal academic dance education, yet had the privilege of systematic dance training and study under Yang Liping's personal mentorship.
Her primal, organic beauty has attracted the attention of multiple masters of the arts. Oscar-winning art director Tim Yip invited her to portray Princess Saheiyini in his stage production Love in the Fallen City; acclaimed director Chen Shizheng commissioned her as choreographer for his immersive theatre piece Classic of Mountains and Seas; she performed in the percussive duet version of The Rite of Spring conducted by Tan Dun; and she served as choreographer and lead performer in the short film The Lost Highway by renowned musician James Lavelle, and multi-disciplinary artists Warren du Preez & Nick Thornton Jones. In 2023, she collaborated with celebrated Chinese poet Yu Xiuhua, serving as choreographer and lead performer in the dance theatre Ten Thousand Tons of Moonlight, directed by Farooq Chaudhry.
A senior performer in Yang Liping's company, frequently taking lead roles in Dynamic Yunnan, Peacock, Under Siege, Peacock in Winter, The Rite of Spring, and other works.
The dance productions in which she has performed or starred have accumulated over 2,000 performances, with her starring works touring more than 200 shows worldwide.
She has worked with Tim Yip, Chen Shizheng, Tan Dun, James Lavelle, Warren du Preez & Nick Thornton Jones, Farooq Chaudhry, and other artists.
Her works have toured in the United Kingdom, Austria, the Netherlands, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Canada, the United States, and other countries and regions.
Career Timeline
early life / stage works / international collaborations / personal creation
Born in Shilong Village, Jianchuan, Dali, she learned Bai songs from childhood and won an award at the Shibao Mountain Song Festival in 2002. In 2004, she was selected to join Dynamic Yunnan.
Joined Yang Liping's company and performed in Dynamic Yunnan, Huayao Da Ge, Kingdom of Women, Moonlight, Spirit of the Peacock, The Sound of Yunnan, Under Siege, and other touring productions.
Created her debut modern dance work Ba Wang Whip, commissioned by the Shanghai International Arts Festival and premiered in London, then toured France, the UAE, the Netherlands, Greece, and more. In 2019 it was nominated for the UK's National Dance Awards.
Played the lead role in Yang Liping's modern dance Rite of Spring and contributed to its choreography. After its Shanghai International Arts Festival premiere, the work toured internationally and was performed more than 100 times. She later led The Love Story of A Peng and Jin Hua and Spring Ox.
Invited by Chen Shizheng to choreograph the immersive theatre work Classic of Mountains and Seas; performed as Princess Saheiyini in Tim Yip's Love in the Fallen City; performed Spring Ox on Hunan TV's Chinese New Year Gala; and launched Dong Jilan Dance Art Camp.
Featured on the cover of W Magazine; choreographed for The New Peacock Flies Southeast; created and performed A Dancer's Homesickness; collaborated with poet Yu Xiuhua as choreographer and lead performer in Ten Thousand Tons of Moonlight, directed by Farooq Chaudhry; performed in the percussive duet version of The Rite of Spring conducted by Tan Dun at the WE Art Festival in Hong Kong; and served as choreographer and lead performer in The Lost Highway.
Initiated 100 Villages, 100 Heritage Practitioners, continuing to visit villages across Yunnan, meet heritage practitioners, and document folk art and everyday life through video and social platforms.
Her new work A Yang Bai was selected as a commissioned work for the 8th Young Artists Platform of Dance by the China Dancers Association and was performed in Shanghai, Aranya, and other places in 2025.
W Magazine Art Collaboration
selected images from a collaborative editorial shoot
