Ping Pong People

Alison M. Friedman

Director

Alison M. Friedman founded Ping Pong Productions in 2009, building on nearly a decade experience working in the performing arts in China.

Ms. Friedman was International Director of the Beijing Modern Dance Company before she was hired by Oscar-winning composer Tan Dun to be General Manager of his company Parnassus Productions, Inc. She came to Beijing on a Fulbright Fellowship to research the development of modern dance in China. In addition to lecturing on modern dance in both China and abroad, Ms. Friedman has conducted research for the Royal Netherlands Embassy and the Asian Cultural Council, and her writing has appeared in Dance Magazine (USA). She has worked as consultant for the US Embassy in China, Columbia University, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, as well as other overseas dance and theater companies touring the Middle Kingdom. From 2003-2005 she hosted a live music program on China Radio International (CRI), China’s largest government-run radio station.

Ms. Friedman has produced international performance festivals in Beijing and was Production Coordinator for the John F. Kennedy Center 2005 Festival of China in Washington DC. During the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games she co-produced the Sino-US modern dance festival booking DANCE FESTIVAL beijing 2008.

As a performer / director, Ms. Friedman has collaborated with artists throughout China including the Living Dance Studio and the National Theater Company of China, and has choreographed/directed a bilingual production of Igor Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat which premiered in May '05 at the China National Theater Company’s East Pioneer Theater and had a revival in March '09 at Shanghai’s Lyceum Theater. An accomplished tap dancer, she frequently teaches tap at the Beijing Dance Academy and in Shanghai.

Ms. Friedman graduated Phi Beta Kappa / magna cum laude from Brown University, where she studied Chinese literature/literary translation. She was a 2009-2010 Arts Management Fellow at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC and a 2011 ISPA Fellow

Follow Alison on Twitter: @AlisonMFriedman
Follow Ping Pong Productions on Twitter: @PingPongArts
Follow Alison in Weibo: @方美昂
Follow Ping Pong Productions on Weibo: @乒乓策划

CityWeekend Beijing interview
An Imperfect Pen interview
Guest contributor on Burgeon Online
Guest blogger on Widening the I

Kaye Zhao

Project Coordinator Intern

Born and raised in Shanghai, Kaye Zhao came to Beijing in 2004. She first met Alison Friedman while interning at the Beijing Modern Dance Company. They reconnected many years later and in 2011 Kaye joined the Ping Pong Productions team as Project Coordinator.

2007-2008: Worked as Studio Assistant to the Director of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

2008: Graduated from the Beijing Dance Academy Arts Communications Department. After graduation, Kaye moved to the USA for further studies.

2009: Interned at the Abrons Arts Center in New York City, developing skills in strategic planning, financial planning, marketing, and development. She also served as stage manager for the Urban Ballet Theater's production of The Nutcracker.

2010: Invited to return to China to serve as Assistant to the Executive Producer of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo opening ceremonies.

Upon returning to the US, Kaye worked with Bowen McCauley Dance Company in Washington, DC, further developing her project management skills. She was in charge of overseeing regular fundraising and donor events, as well as working closely with the Director on media/marketing plans. Bowen McCauley Dance Company is the only dance company in the Metropolitan-DC area to provide free weekly dance classes for people with Parkinson Disease and their care-partners. During Kaye's tenure with Bowen McCauley Dance, she also helped develop outreach programs with local K-12 schools, community centers and universities.

Kaye Zhao currently is pursuing her Master's Degree in Arts Management at George Mason University, and is dedicated to fostering Sino-US cultural exchange.

Heather Wigmore

Research/Development Assistant

Heather Wigmore joined Ping Pong Productions in 2010 as a Research/Development Assistant. Based in New York, Heather researches development strategies and funding opportunities for PPP and its projects. She also serves as a U.S. representative and contact.

Prior to joining PPP, Heather lived in Shanghai and worked at an environmental nonprofit organization, Shanghai Roots & Shoots. She managed the organization’s Million Tree Project, gaining experience in fundraising, marketing, and event/trip planning. Heather worked with donors of all levels, from students to CEOs, helping each to define and implement their fundraising and giving strategies. While in Shanghai, she also taught modern dance classes on the weekends.

As an undergraduate, Heather performed in and choreographed for various shows, including Washington University Dance Theater, American College Dance Festival, and Young Choreographers’ Showcase. A duet from Heather’s senior dance showcase (co-choreographed with the other performer) was selected for the 2009 Dumbo Dance Festival in New York.

Heather graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2008 with a Chinese Language & Literature major and a Modern Dance minor. She also works at Trisha Brown Dance Company as a Development Associate.

Angelina Lin

Project Collaborator

Angelina Lin started dance in the ballet department at the Beijing Dance Academy, and finished at the Princess Grace Academy of Ballet in Monte Carlo under Russian ballet legend Marika Besobrasova. Since then she has danced across the globe, from Mississippi to Boston, St. Petersburg to Jerusalem, and finally back to China.

In addition to her dance career, Miss Lin graduated with honors from Boston University, specializing in International Relations and Russian Studies. While in the US, Miss Lin was involved with several ballet companies that promoted the arts in hard-to-reach areas such as correctional facilities, orphanages, and underserved public school systems. The combination of her academic and artistic experiences convinced her that art can cross all boundaries.

During summer 2008, Miss Lin organized humanitarian tours for several dance companies from the US and Australia. Dancers came to Beijing, China and worked with local aid organizations to teach workshops and give performances for orphans, children of migrant workers, and shelters for victims of human trafficking and abuse. The same summer she was also crucial in bringing in LA-based Urban Poets, and their sell-out debut in Beijing’s YuGongYiShan Club.

Ms. Lin's choreography has been showcased in Beijing, Boston, Jerusalem, and Shanghai. In 2009 she initiated the ILLUME open performance series at the Peng Hao Theatre in Beijing, focusing on integrating various artistic disciplines around various themes, with artists from both China and abroad. She served as rehearsal director for the Beijing Contemporary Dance Theatre’s premier international collaborative showcase Prism, featuring the rising choreographic talents of Pontus Lidberg (Sweden), Louise Midjord (Denmark), and Nadine Thouin (Canada).

She currently performs with several companies in Arizona and is a certified GYROTONIC™ instructor.

Some of our Strategic Partners

Guangzhou Culture Broadcasting Television News and Publishing Bureau
Beijing Come & Go Center for Art
Chicago Human Rhythm Project (US)
Beijing Dance Academy
The National Theatre Company of China
PengHao Theater, Beijing
The Institute for Provocation (Belgium / China)
TEDxBeijing
...and you!