Zhang Jigang (, ; (born December 25, 1958) is an internationally acclaimed

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

and a

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

in the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five service branches: the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, ...

. He was the former director of the Song and Dance Ensemble with the

before promotion in 2006. Zhang Jigang now holds the highest non-combat military officer rank in China."BOCOG announces creation team for games ceremonies"
2010 Commerce Center, B.C. Olympics Secretariat. He is the only choreographer to receive the crown title of "Century Star" in the country, and is responsible for the creation of more than 300 large-scale productions in over 60 countries.

Early career

Zhang Jigang was born in the ancient Chinese city of

Yuci Yuci District () is a district in Jinzhong, Shanxi, China. Administrative Divisions Subdistricts:http://www.yuci.gov.cn/article_desc?article_id=370.html * Beiguan Subdistrict (), Jinlun Subdistrict (), Xinhua Subdistrict (), Xinan Subdistrict ...

located in the

Shanxi Province Shanxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is ...

. As a young child, he was influenced by Zhong Ziwu (Cultural Revolution Dance). He began formal dance training at the age of 12 in Taiyuan at the Song and Dance Ensemble of Shanxi Province. By the age of 17, he was working as an established choreographer for the Chinese government. In the 1980s he received the highest national dance award called Quan Guo Wu Dao Da Sai (). Zhang Jigang became the first resident of Shanxi Province to receive such an award, propelling his career to national stardom putting Shanxi Province in the entertainment spotlight for the first time. Shortly after, in 1988 he enrolled at the Beijing Dance Academy where he graduated with a degree in choreography. He would later return to university and finish with a Masters in Political Science.

1980s

Zhang truly began to establish himself as a leading choreographer during this period, although he was yet to obtain the level of international success he would experience in the 90's. His works contained many traditional cultural Chinese dance influences throughout the decade, and were often categorized by heavy militaristic symbols.

''Mother and Son (母与子)''

Created by Zhang in 1986, it revolves around a mother and her criminal son. It was performed in Beijing, and was one of Zhang's first major works.

''The Night of Yuanxiao Festival (元宵夜)''

A comedic story created by Zhang Jigang revolving around a couple who visit the Yuanxiao Festival and lose each other in crowd. It quickly became a smash hit, and was franchised across China by dozens of provincial theatre companies.

''Feelings of the Yellow River Girl (黄河儿女情)''

A show developed by a number of choreographers.

1990s

A prolific period in Zhang's career, in 1992 he was invited to work as Choreographer for the Art Troupe of the PLA's General Political Department. Representing the highest attainable level of dance, the troupe continues to be the most famous group of its kind in China.

''Yellow Earth (黄土黄)''

Received the 20th Century Classical Dance Award, and a national smash success. It also received the 3rd Taoli Award for outstanding dance production.

''A Man Who Dances Yangge (一个扭秧歌的人)''

Another production to receive the 20th Century Classical Dance Award. The story revolved around the passion of dance in China.

''I Come From the Yellow River (俺从黄河来)''

''Be Kind, and Take it Easy (善之)''

''Wing of Life (生命之翼)''

''Happy Girl (女儿红)''

''Flying (翔)''

''Daughter's River (女儿河)''

2000–present

A period of international acclaim and militaristic success for Zhang Jigang. He was promoted to the rank of

Lt. General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

in 2006 and currently holds the highest military rank in China for any non-combat officer. Aside from receiving awards in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

, Japan and

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

, Zhang Jigang created a number of multimillion-dollar large-scale productions that subsequently toured

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Australia, Italy and Spain. He currently resides in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China with his wife Zhang Lamei.

''Thousand Hand Bodhisattva (
Guan Yin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...
) (千手观音)''

Zhang Jigang's most famous and influential production. The piece features 21 hearing impaired dancers who form remarkable arm and hand positions by standing very squished together in a straight line. Breathtaking images are created as the dancers produce perfectly timed and choreographed movements. The show quickly became a national treasure and overwhelming domestic success. It was first performed internationally at the

Kennedy Centre The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

in front of former

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

, senior White House staff and spectators. It generated rave reviews and was showcased shortly thereafter around the world in countries including Australia, Japan, North Korea, Egypt, Turkey and Italy. In 2004 it was performed at the Closing Ceremonies for the

2004 Summer Paralympics ) , nations = 136 , athletes = 3,806 , events = 519 in 19 sports , opening = 17 September , closing = 28 September , opened_by = President Costis Stephanopoulos , cauldron = Georgios Toptsis , stadium = Olympic ...

in Athens, Greece and

Miss World 2004 Miss World 2004, the 54th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 4 December 2004 at the Crown of Beauty Theatre in Sanya, China. The 2004 pageant marks the second straight year that Sanya played host of the pageant. Rosanna Davison of ...

pageant held in Sanya, China. The primary filmed version was captured in 2005 at the Spring Festival in China on CCTV. It subsequently spread across the internet on such sites as Google Video and

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

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. It is widely estimated that hundreds of millions of Chinese and international viewers around the world have viewed the videos online.

''Forbidden Fruit Under The Great Wall (一把酸枣)''

Zhang Jigang's most recent production. The large scale show features a cast with some of China's most famous acrobatic and traditional dance stars. It revolves around the life of a young man who seeks his fortune in

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...

during the

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

. Poison Dates includes a huge ensemble with over 200 dancers. It is franchised across China and has been received by soldout shows in over 100 cities including

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

Taiyuan Taiyuan (; ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; also known as (), ()) is the capital and largest city of Shanxi Province, People's Republic of China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. ...

and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

. In early 2007, the show toured Japan and in December 2007 travelled to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

''CCTV National Dance Competition, Season 4 (第四届CCTV电视舞蹈大奖赛)''

Zhang Jigang was a returning celebrity judge on China's most popular dance idol show. The program could be compared to that of the

Idol series ''Idol'' (also known as ''SuperStar'' in some countries) is a reality television singing competition format created by British television producer Simon Fuller and developed by Fremantle. The format began in 2001 with the British television se ...

Dancelife ''DanceLife'' (also known as ''J.Lo's DanceLife'' in the UK) is a 2007 dance-oriented reality show, featuring and produced by Jennifer Lopez. The series follows the lives of seven dancers trying to break into the world of professional dance and ...

, with contestants vying to win a coveted prize in ballet, hip-hop, Latin, folk and Chinese classical dance. It was broadcast nationally every night from April 19 - 28th 2007 at 7:30pm on

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...

3. Season 4 received the highest domestic ratings for the series ever, with an estimated national audience over 200 million viewers per episode.

2008 Beijing Opening Ceremonies

On August 8, 2008, Zhang Jigang co-directed and choreographed the

2008 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the ''Bird's Nest''. It began at 20:00 China Standard Time ( UTC+08:00) on Friday, 8 August 2008, as the number 8 is considered to be auspicious. ...

in Beijing, China. Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC Coordination Commission for the XXIX Olympiad, called the ceremony "a grand, unprecedented success." The AFP called it "a spectacular opening ceremony." The

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...