Today we’d like to introduce you to Kiki (yuchin) Tseng

Hi Kiki (yuchin), we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

My dance journey started when I was 5 years old in Yilan, Taiwan. I was a kid who just loved dancing and absolutely loved performing in front of an audience. Dance pretty much occupied all of my time as a child. I was either in school or dancing. I remember having moments where I was jealous of my friends who were able to just have a “normal weekend” or didn’t have to stress about being criticized at such a young age. Nevertheless, I had a gut feeling that I didn’t want to quit. When I was about 12 or 13, I decided to make it official. I devoted more time to training and made being a dancer my career goal. I told my teacher I needed more dance training, so I started dancing five or six times a week instead of three. I danced with dancers who were at a higher level so I could push myself. I remember being so terrified, but I knew that’s what I needed to do to get to a higher level. On top of that, I was in school from at least 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, so between dance and school, I really did not have any free time.

This was also a time when international dance competitions were introduced in Taiwan, which was a very exciting era. I competed twice in the Taiwan Grand Prix, an international ballet competition founded by Kenny Wang. The competition has brought many opportunities to Taiwan, especially for people in the ballet industry. During my second time competing, I received a full scholarship to come to the US to study at the Harid Conservatory. It was definitely a dream come true. I was 16 at the time, and I had around two weeks to pack up my life and move across the world to chase my dream. At this point, I was beyond terrified; I had never been to the United States, never flown by myself, and experienced so many “firsts.” I was grateful to be invited to stay at Harid for two years and finish high school there.

It was a really tough two years. Language, lifestyle, dance, social life—nothing was easy to catch up on. I was young and didn’t really have the knowledge, ability, or support to guide me through how to deal with stress and harsh judgments. It was really challenging, especially mentally. After Harid, I moved on to SUNY Purchase College, majoring in Dance and Arts Management. I kept myself busy in college, knowing the life I had was not to be taken for granted. I tried to absorb as much information as possible. College was much better in terms of my experiences in the United States; being in New York, where there was more diversity, and being immersed in an environment where different dance styles were offered was really refreshing to me. I had some amazing teachers who made me fall in love with dance again. My peers in college were some of the most talented dancers I have ever met; they opened my eyes and inspired me every day to dance better. I had so much to learn and still do, but being in college made me realize that dance can take so many different forms. That’s when I fell in love with modern dance.

Fast forward to post-college: I went into Graham II to train more specifically in the Martha Graham Dance Technique. It was my first “real world” experience. Being in New York City and trying to keep up with the city is a challenge of its own. Graham was and is something very special to my heart. It has so much character and history; it’s physically challenging, yet so liberating to dance. I was with Graham II for two years, and I am now dancing professionally in New York, still trying to figure out where I belong and where I am on my journey.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

No, it definitely has not. Just talking about the current challenges. Being an artist living in a city like New York, even if you are getting booked and working 8 hours a day, most of the time, you still don’t make nearly enough to provide for the simple necessities. So it’s common for people to work another full-time job on top of the full-time dance job, or multiple part-time jobs. And when you get booked and need to leave for a while, you are expected to take a leave of absence from your job, or sometimes even quit, so you can devote all your time to your profession for 2 months. Then you come back and hope you still have the job or start the job hunting process again. It definitely takes a lot of trust and faith, and sometimes you need to be a little delusional to make it work. For me, being a foreigner, there’s an additional layer of challenge: obtaining a working visa, which is a process like no other. Honestly, every day is a challenge, but again, this is the life I chose, and it was once a life I dreamed of living. So, as challenging as it is, I have no regrets.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?

I am a dancer currently based in New York. Right now, I dance full-time with the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, as well as in some project-based work. It’s the beginning of my professional career, and though my younger self would have considered this a success, I definitely don’t think I am anywhere near my goal. I am figuring things out as I go and trying to learn more along the way. I think one thing I’ve realized the most about being in the real world is that, the second you are out there, you are often reminded that you are just not enough. Sometimes it gets overwhelming, but again, it’s never going to be easy.

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?

I do think that, in this industry, luck plays a big role in one’s success. Of course, there is talent and hard work; those play major roles. What’s really hard about being in the art industry is that a lot of the time, you don’t always get back what you deserve. It’s not always “if you work hard, it’s yours,” which makes this industry extremely unpredictable. I was, and am, extremely lucky to be experiencing the life I am currently living, and I do not take it for granted. I am grateful to be able to support myself in New York; I feel like that alone requires a certain amount of luck. Of course, there have been many times when I felt like fate had not been on my side, but at the end of the day, I try to always do my best. If luck is the only reason that stood in my way, then there is nothing I can really do about it; it just wasn’t meant to be.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kiki__tseng/

Image Credits

Wei Ta Chen (Featured Photo)
Nai Ni Chen Dance Company
Jeff Wang