Inspiring through Chinese Traditional Dance

Ms. Zhang Li "Lily" Taylor enjoyed a long professional career as a renowned dancer in China. She toured all over the world performing for audiences and heads of state. She studied many styles of dance starting from an early age including traditional Chinese dance, ballet, and Spanish folk dances.

She began teaching dance in China in 1990. She also taught in Seattle prior to her move to Kansas City in 2000. In 2005, she opened the Zhang li Dance Academy. She choreographs dances incorporating her knowledge from diverse dance styles such as Mongolian, Dunhuang, and XinJiang Weiwuerzu.

Ms. Taylor is internationally renowned under her Chinese name of Zhang Li (pronounced jong lee). In Bejing, she won the National First Prize of Performance for playing the lead character in “Siluhuayu”, or “Raining Flowers on the Silk Road”, a two hour dance drama. The production was also nominated for several awards akin to the American Oscar or Tony awards. She was a member of the Chinese Dancers Association and the lead female dancer for the largest troupe in China, with over 400 members.

In China, She was often asked to represent her country as part of a cultural exchange group that traveled and performed in over 30 countries around the world.  She has a distinguished reputation for developing new dances set to traditional music and depicting historical events and legends of Chinese history.