- Venue Selection
I have chosen the rehearsal hall on the second floor of the Shanghai International Dance Center as the main exhibition space. This area includes a main hall, a long corridor, and four separate rehearsal rooms. The layout allows for flexible division into different themed zones and provides an immersive experience for visitors. It helps bring audiences closer to the sense of loneliness faced by dancers.
- Exhibition Design
The design of this exhibition focuses on the theme of “loneliness”. It uses visual, auditory, and tactile elements to guide visitors through the dancer’s journey and moments of loneliness. The display follows a clear timeline, starting from leaving home, entering professional training, and life in a foreign country. Clear signs and pathways make it easy for visitors to move smoothly through the space.
- Key Design Elements:
Interactive multimedia: Using projections and audio guides to enhance the experience. For example, the entrance ticket is designed like a school admission letter. After scanning the ticket, visitors take an elevator, where announcements from high-speed trains and airports are played to simulate the journey of leaving home.
- Display Arrangement:
Main Hall: Exhibits display old photos of dancers with their families, themed around farewells and longing. Personal items such as dolls and souvenirs are also shown to create a genuine emotional connection.
Dance studio 1:
Under dim lighting, video projections display snippets from dancers’ journals. Stacked worn-out dance shoes and old practice costumes showcase marks of growth, emphasizing the persistence through loneliness.
Dance studio 2：Set up a designated viewing area for watching a dance performance. The dance will last about 10-15 minutes, featuring approximately ten dancers. All performers are students from different grades at the Shanghai Dance School. In this section, the choreographer will employ both physical and verbal language. Dancers will use body movements, short phrases, or shouts to express their inner loneliness. This approach allows the performance to clearly and directly convey the feelings of isolation experienced by individuals at different ages and stages.
Dance studio 3： The room will have no furnishings and will be almost completely dark, with only a single harsh light shining down vertically from the ceiling. The background music will be a recording of a teacher saying "One more time," played on repeat, creating an atmosphere of pressure and isolation. A sign at the door will read "Please keep quiet," allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the dancer's solitude.
Dance studio 4:
Videos of interviews, classic dance clips, and documentary segments are played. A message board is set up where visitors can write down “My loneliest moment.”
- Event Planning
Since the exhibition will only be held once, it will be promoted widely through social media and collaborations with partners to reach the target audience.
During the exhibition, a psychology expert will be invited to share insights about dancers’ mental states and discuss strategies to cope with loneliness. This will help deepen the exhibition’s impact and promote social awareness.
- Project Budget
| Budge Item | Estimated Amount（£） | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue Rental | Rental fee for the rehearsal hall on the second floor of Shanghai Dance Center (including space usage and setup time) | 2000 | Adjust based on actual rental period and venue pricing |
| Exhibit Production & Marterials | Multimedia equipment rental (projectors, screens, sound system) | 1000 | Includes rental of projectors, sound, lighting equipment |
| Theme installations (backdrops, display structures, lighting setup) | 500 | DIY or commissioned fabrication | |
| Special lighting and ambiance materials | 200 | ||
| Exhibit Items & Setup | Shoes, practice clothes, old photos, memorabilia, interactive elements | 500 | Printing, framing, custom objects |
| Multimedia Content Production | Recording, filming, editing, and display content creation | 1500 | Content planning, recording costs |
| Persionnel Costs | Curators, technical support, designers | 2000 | Based on project, approx. 3-5 staff |
| Fees for choreographers and dancers involved in performances or workshops | 1500 | Estimated total for 1 choreographers and 10 dancers | |
| On-site staff (guides, security, tech support) | 500 | Around 5 staff total, try to find student volunteers as much as possible | |
| Promotion & Marketing | Social media advertising, posters, promo videos, media partnerships | 800 | |
| Workshops & Lectures | Psychology expert guest lecture (fee, materials) | 1000 | Includes honorarium and on-site arrangements |
| Contingency & Buffer | Reserve fund (approx. 10-15%) | 1200 | To cover unexpected expenses |
| Total | 12700 |
- Funding Sources
1. Shanghai International Dance Center and Shanghai Cultural and Arts Foundation
2. A portion of the budget will be covered by ticket sales
3. Collaborations with media outlets and curatorial companies to seek funding support, while also gaining brand exposure
- Promotion Plan
1. Strategy:
Combine online and offline methods. Use social media platforms like Xiaohongshu, Douyin, WeChat, and Instagram to promote. Also, leverage the influence of the “Glory- Chinese Ballet Stars Gala ” event, using promotional materials to attract attention.
2. Target Audience:
Focus on dancers, dance students, and art enthusiasts. Conduct targeted promotion to reach these specific groups.
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