The percussion of feet striking the ground — quick, insistent, then suddenly restrained before the next surge — carries the atmosphere of the plateau into the theater. In final rehearsals, dancers in Tibetan costumes and specially made tap shoes carry speed, force and changes of mood across the stage.
These rhythms will anchor Tashi Shabdro, a title meaning "auspicious dance", when it makes its Beijing debut on Saturday and Sunday. Its premiere coincides with this year's Serfs' Emancipation Day in the Xizang autonomous region.
