Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Luyan Li. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Luyan, appreciate you joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
Like babies, I learned dance by mimicking cool, interesting movements in the beginning of my journey, then deepened my craft and understanding of the art by immersing myself in the cultures of the dance styles I practice.
My younger self would have wanted to speed things up, as this world pushes us to be so efficient. Knowing what I know now, I realize that I am always exactly on time — never behind or ahead — because, since this is my life, how could I be behind? There’s nothing to compare myself to, no standard of being slow or behind.
Grounding and truthfulness are two of the most essential skills in dance, to me.
“Nurture your connection with the earth, because that’s the base of every movement” popped up during a recent meditation, and I found it very touching. Every movement, no matter how airy, starts from the ground and always comes back to the embrace of the ground. So no matter what style one is practicing, a healthy, trusting connection with the floor allows us to be supported by the power of the Earth and then extend toward the sky. If our mind and body are not in harmony with that power, it can lead to frequent fatigue and, eventually, injuries.
The obstacle that stands in the way of my learning is the “urgency of learning more.” As I mentioned in other questions, this collective habit of rushing creates an imagined scenario of being chased by a restless performance-evaluation monster. It doesn’t guarantee better performance, but it does guarantee higher anxiety. It also leads us to live in a mindset of scarcity — where our actions are powered by a feeling of “not enough.” So we abandon our feelings and our center, running after accomplishments and outside validation while letting our heart and body become an empty temple. Guard your heart, because everything else flows from there.
Luyan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I studied Chinese dance for one year when I was 7, before shifting to 8 years of Latin dance training starting at age 8. At 14, I had the blessing of starting the journey of learning street dance freestyle, choreography, contemporary dance, ballet, Krump, house dance, West African dance, heels dance, jazz, and much more.
I have performed, choreographed, and movement-directed for theaters, events, weddings, music videos, music festivals, and more. I specialize in improvisational and environmental/interactive performance. With the versatility of my movement and the high adaptability of my body, my dance can harmonize with very different environments. The texture of my movement creates an immersive, responsive, dynamic, and emotionally charged performance.
I think what sets me apart from others is the power of emotion and vulnerability. Dance has always been a pure, deep, and sacred place for me, I live through each moment not only in my body but also in my heart and beyond, which allows the audience to have a visually and energetically immersive experience.
What I’m most proud of is that I’ve built a practice where dance feels like devotion rather than performance for show. My work blends technical training with improvisation and emotional presence. I’m proud that I have continued to create and dance through uncertainty and hardship without losing my reverence, sensitivity and empathy. I have remained committed to creating work that invites people to slow down, feel deeply, and reconnect with themselves and others.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
Starting in spring 2025, I spent more than a year not taking any dance classes, and instead dedicated my time to cultivating my connection with my body, either at home or in the dance studio.
I have always been taught to overcompensate and push through pain in my body in order to get more work and training experience, calling it “endurance” or “professionalism.” This led me to a burnout and a bottleneck point in my career and dance. Since then, I’ve understood that taking care of this body and heart is part of the career, and now it has become a priority.
At first, I felt very unsettled, because as someone who is used to feeling fulfilled by outside feedback, learning how to be with myself — solitude — was a very new thing for me. Yet it has proven essential: now that I’m coming back to dance with other people, I feel more grounded, confident, deeper, and truer than ever. It’s a solid, peaceful feeling — I feel safe in any environment because I have myself now.
The light that shines in my dance comes from the relationship between only me, my body, and the music. It’s not about anybody or anything outside.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding part about being an artist is that we get to be like kids all the time, without worrying too much about “fitting into proper adult behavior in society.” The goal of our career is to constantly train our brain and body to create new neural connections, stay open to all possibilities and pathways, and explore concepts that are joyful and interesting. Don’t get me wrong — it is still not easy to fully allow creativity and childlike wonder to flow, even in the creative arts world, because we as artists can also get lost in the limitations and rigidity of structure. However, I think it’s more acceptable for an artist to make the artistic choice to create for joy, freedom, love, and life as work. I find that to be a very luxurious and precious blessing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://liluyan.wixsite.com/love
- Instagram: @bigblackspidermama
Image Credits
@mintskaa
@mariajhackett
@vandyphotography