Provenance: A letter to my daughter

Synopsis

A short dance film about a transnational adoptee’s personal experiences struggling with identity, belonging, and inclusion growing up in the Midwest of America. Directed and choreographed by Li Chiao-Ping, dancer Elisabeth Roskopf’s exquisite movement and personal story reclaiming her heritage are captured beautifully by cinematographer and editor Christal Wagner.

 
Director Biography – Li Chiao-Ping

Li Chiao-Ping’s work has been praised in the NY Times, Village Voice, Dance Magazine, LA Times, Washington Post, & SF Bay Guardian. She “takes us to a different place in dance. The vision is both Asian and western, combining the essence of both worlds.” (Martha’s Vineyard Times) Known for her originality, trademark physicality, humanism, & visual design, her work has been shown in major venues/festivals in the U.S. & abroad, including Jacob’s Pillow, Bates, American Dance Festival (ADF), Kennedy Center, Dance Place, Danspace Project, ODC Theater, CounterPulse, & around the world. Named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to watch”, Li Chiao-Ping is a multi-hyphenate artist, a 9-time NEA grant awardee, and a MAP Fund grant recipient, who creates layered works that combine multiple art forms to explore themes of culture and identity. Li was Director of Dance at Hollins College & former Chair of UW-Madison’s Dance Dept, where she continues to teach. Honored to be a recipient of an Outstanding Woman of Color in Education Award, NEA grants, & US representative in ADF’s International Choreographer’s Program, Li’s work addresses topics of identity, diversity, inclusion, space, & place. She recently won Best Direction Award for her screendance work “Provenance: A Letter to My Daughter” from the 2023 Experimental Dance & Music Film Festival and Best Picture, Best Experimental Film, and Best Dance Film from the 2024 Los Angeles Chinatown International Film Festival for her screendance “in silence is the offering presented”. Recent/current projects include DIRTY LAUNDRY”, a work for the stage that begins touring in 2026, “Never Lost”, her latest screendance work completed in 2025, and “HERE LIES THE TRUTH”, a work for the stage and the subject of a new documentary project. www.lcpdance.com

 

country

United States

runtime

09:19

CREDITS

Director

Li Chiao-Ping

Writer

Elisabeth Roskopf

Choreographer

Li Chiao-Ping

Cinematographer

Christal Wagner

Editor

Christal Wagner

Key Cast

Elisabeth Roskopf