The Oakland Ballet Company is set to premiere a new work on May 4 at Oakland's Paramount Theatre, inspired by the history of Angel Island, known for housing Chinese and other immigrants in prison-like conditions from 1910 to 1940. The performance features a dancer with a symbolic 40-ft braid and other dancers echoing themes of ancestry, confinement, and immigration. The ballet interprets over 200 poignant poems carved by detainees on the islandâs walls, bringing attention to their struggles and resilience amid discriminatory laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act.
The Oakland Ballet Company's ambitious new work draws on the history of Angel Island's immigration detention center, emphasizing the resilience of the detained through dance.
Detainees carved over 200 poems into the walls of Angel Island, expressing their anguish and rage under the oppressive conditions faced during their detention.
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