Lin Xiuwei. [Photo provided to China Daily]

10 Years at Cloud Gate: "The most industrious dancer"

"My classmates were all intimidated by Lin Hwai-min. He was very serious and often had very bad temper. When we had class, the front seats were always empty, for no one dared to sit close to him. But I am the only one who sat on those front seats. Why? Because I was always late and there were no seats in the back left for me. I had no other choice but to sit close to Lin Hwai-min," Lin laughed.

This caught the attention of Lin Hwai-min. And he also found Lin brave enough to challenge the difficult gestures in dances.

Then Lin received his invitation to join the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre when she was only 16 years old.

"At first, every day seemed so long. My feet and kneels were broken due to the dance practice. I was young and preferred to have more fun, say, parties, so I quit and left Cloud Gate," smiled Lin.

But later one performance of Cloud Gate moved her to tears and Lin decided to join the theatre again. Luckily, she was admitted by Lin Hwai-min who still thought highly of her.

Since then, Lin has spent 10 years at Cloud Gate.

She dared to challenge the "dangerous" dances that were not good for her physical heath. And within five years, she was promoted to a rehearsal guide from an intern.

Lin Hwai-min praised her as the "most industrious dancer" at Cloud Gate.

During this period, Lin also learnt a lot about Chinese opera and she excelled at changing operas into dances.

She also met her husband Wu Xingguo who was the lead dancer at Cloud Gate.