Lift the Fallen is a Richmond Ballet production that will be staged during the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The choreographer was also inspired by the music of Max Richter's Memorybook compositions, which he describes as "very emotional image that it gave to me was like ocean waves. Human emotion is almost like the waves, waves that hit you".

"I want to show the audiences, who have experienced this kind of emotional hit, that they can also recover and move forward," says Ma, 37, who danced with the National Ballet of China from 1995 to 1999.

Ma moved to the United States 15 years ago. He has choreographed for different companies, including Paris Opera Ballet, The Royal Ballet and New York City Ballet.

He has choreographed three works for the Richmond Ballet since 2010－Lift the Fallen, Luminitza and Ershter Vals.

"Ma's choreography is based in the classical ballet style, but it is infused with a contemporary edge that makes the mood of his work both timeless and accessible to audiences today," says Stoner Winslett, artistic director of Richmond Ballet.

"Despite having lived in the US for more than a decade, Ma remains deeply connected to his Chinese heritage, and you can see his reverence for Chinese tradition in this work. Ma also borrowed steps from traditional Chinese dance which appear throughout the work."