Studio Stories: NEW BREED series with Cheng Xiong - Season 15, Episode 159

Cheng Xiong is a local Hmong dance artist, choreographer,
teacher, and community leader. Xiong was born in a refugee camp
in Thailand, sponsored by family in the United States, and moved
to St. Paul, Minnesota. Xiong started picking up Hip Hop dance,
particularly Break(dance)ing, through family and friends. With
his journey as a street dancer, he continued his studies in dance
at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities and was able to
broaden to different styles and professional skills. Xiong became
the first in his family to receive a Bachelor of Arts. He is
currently a company member of Black Label Movement. He recently
worked with local professional companies such STRONGmovement,
BRKFST Dance, and Minnesota Timberwolves’s First Avenue Breakers.
He is also a Breakdance instructor and educator, teaching at
Cypher Side Dance School and the University of Minnesota Dance
Program. 


Xiong is also a Hmong dance artist/researcher who is among the
first in Minnesota to fuse forms of Breaking, Contemporary, and
acrobatic dance styles. His integrated movement practice consists
of floorwork, high physicality transitions, and rigorous dynamic
movements that thrive on integration and cross-training.
Developing a new personal style that pushes athletic skills to
their highest and at the same time challenges the creative
process by drawing from his background, allowing movements
forming together in unique ways. His overarching aim is to
continue to use the body as a medium for communication.


Some highlights of his work were in 2018, when Xiong participated
in the “I’m From…Vol. 2” show at the Southern Theater, where he
debuted his solo in collaboration with Tou Saiko Lee, called
“Being Hmong, Being Free.” That same year, Xiong was one of the
choreographers to present work for Saint Paul Conservatory
Performing Arts’ J-Term Project: Dance Repertory Concert, where
he debuted his new work “Locomote” in The O'shaughnessy theater
at St. Catherine University.  In 2022, Xiong was awarded as
one of the McKnight Dancer Fellows. The following year, Xiong
debuted his new work “Penumbra” at the Southern Theater, for
Arena Dances presents CANDY BOX as one of the Happy Hour artists.
Right after that, he also debuted his new work called “Breaking
Breaking” for the Mixtape Collective show, Mixtape 6: Cypher
Space, that was held at the Cowles Center for Dance and the
Performing Arts. Later in fall of 2023, the Minneosta Orchestra
commissioned Xiong to create a duet called, “Stories of the
Harvest,” with composer Jocelyn Hagen’s excerpt of “Shoua and the
Northern Lights Dragon,” for their annual Young People’s Concert:
Sounds of the Harvest. In 2024, Xiong presented his new work
“Polarity” at the Barbara Barker Center for Dance for Black Label
Movement’s Inaugural Mover’s Make series.


Alongside his repertoire of performances, Xiong is a Breakdance
instructor and educator. He has taught at after-school programs
such as Washington Technology Magnet Middle, Hazel Park
Preparatory Academy, and Ramsey Middle through the East Side Arts
Council. At present, Xiong is currently teaching at the
University of Minnesota Minnesota Theater and Dance Program and
Cypher Side Dance School.