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Friday, February 29, 2008
Inspired Lines : Ryan from O School This interview has been incorporated into the Spotlight article, City Harvest Church : The Cultural Mandate & the Arts.Within this article : A. Seeking the Holy City by Rev Dr Kong Hee B. A brief description of the Cultural Mandate and its impact on the arts C. An interview with Sandy Yeo, Drama Director of City Harvest Church D. An interview with KC Gan, songwriter and Creative Director of City Harvest Church E. A link to a past interview with Ryan, Director of O School ********* Writer : Dawn Fung Meet Ryan from O School, a leading dance school in Singapore. Ryan has worked with Jacky Cheung, Jay Chou, Sun and currently leads the school as the Creative Director. He is married to Andrea, and both of them worship and serve at City Harvest Church. Ryan grooves Dawn : You mentioned that you came to know Christ through working with Sun, through her tour, Sun With Love. Ryan : Kenny (Low, principal of O School and CHEC) came to attend my class when I used to run a dance studio as a co-partner, dance teacher and choreographer. He liked my style and asked me to choreograph an item for Sun. One item lead to two and so forth... in the end I choreographed the whole concert. Working with the people at the concert changed the way I looked at Christianity. I used to dislike Christians because I found their way of evangelising unreasonable, at the time when I believed in Buddhism - it was offensive to hear that non-Christians would go to hell. Of course that kind of message works for believers, but to secular people, that does not sit well. I was offended that they criticised my religion then, but did not try to understand why I was a part of it. So over the 7 months that I worked with Sun, Kenny never once preached to me about Jesus, nor said hurtful remarks. Dawn : What was the turning point? Ryan : The attitude of the team working with Sun - they were so different. The stage crew to the dancers were willing to put in overtime to do their best for the show whereas outside professionals would demand extra pay according to the hours stipulated. Moreover, the team had an indefatigable spirit - one time, I saw how they began to work after they touched down from the airport. More impressive was the fact that there were volunteers. I could see that show caller was not trained but she did her best to put in a good show, which did turn out to be good. Their excellent work attitudes and lack of complaints made me curious. I found that all of them were Christians and their focus stemmed from a common belief which I did not understand. I wondered about their God and His power - these people were successful in one accord. They did not do it for money or commercial gain. Also they would answer my questions without going beyond what was asked. After the tour, I worked with City Harvest Church for their Easter production, and got to know the story of Jesus. I thought, you mean there is really this Jesus guy? Many questions formulated in my mind. I asked Kenny about tongues (it sounded like chanting to me) and he explained simply that it was talking to God in a perfect prayer. That floored me because nothing outdoes perfection. I only knew how to say, God help me, over and over again but I understood that praying in tongues was the way the Holy Spirit helped us to pray, even when we don't know what to say. Through a series of dreams and incidents, I knew that things were not coincidental. One dream showed me a bible; I went to buy one the next day, not knowing what to do with it. I finally received Christ at an altar call in Perth, because I really wanted to know who Jesus is. That changed my life. Dawn : What changed after you accepted Christ? Ryan : God curbed my vulgarities because someone told me that the mouth that I use to praise God should not be used to condemn others. That was a big breakthrough in my life - previously that was how I took out my frustrations in the dance studio when I taught but since I knew Jesus, I learnt how to control my temper. I learnt to put myself in others' positions and not simply look at the situation from my own perspective. I started to analyse how I could help my students better - was it the way I spoke, or something else that hindered their process? Instead of thinking how I could teach, it became 'how the students want to be taught'. That was a paradigm shift. Dawn : How did believing in Christ affected the way you thought about dance? Ryan : I don't lack inspiration. Even if I come into class in the midst of a busy schedule, God shows up - I get ideas from listening to the music. Psalms 149:3 says, "Let them praise His name with dancing; Let them sing praises to Him with timbrel and lyre." (New American Standard Bible) The part about dancing made me understand why I was given the skills to dance, to choreograph - it is to praise Him. That's how God made me. When I dance, I feel as if I connect to God in a private and personal way that I understand. When I prepare new works, I will ask the Lord what to do. When the music begins, I can sense the Holy Spirit guiding me, "Try something new...start from another position..." My style, directions and movements are affected from this personal relationship with the Lord. I am brought out of my usual routines and challenged by His leading; instead of my beginning with a bounce, I try something else. Dawn : How does this affect the way you relate to other dancers in the scene? Ryan : I think they don't understand how I can always come up something new. As Christians, our source of creativity is from God but this can be awkward to explain. The other dancers do know that I am different but are unable to comprehend how. Because I came from a situation like theirs, I reach out to them by showing the creativity that God has blessed me with but not with not with a preachy nor condemning attitude (that was how I was evangelised by Kenny). This method has influenced some good dancers who in time, believed in Jesus : Gin, Carol and Daniel, Wenzhi (O School dancers). In Christ these dancers who started out from the streets freelancing like I did, broke free from habits like smoking, now are stable in a full time job. It is interesting to see how God uses certain groups of people to do outreach. Now these dancers are influencing other dancers who will influence their students... Dawn : What do you see for O School? Ryan : We hope that O School will be internationally recognised, create job opportunities for professional dancers and reach out to the youths at risk. For the past 2 years, we have stuck to these objectives. In the process of serving the people, money does come in, and we are blessed in that sense. Since Kenny had won the Schwab Foundation's Social Entrepreneur 2008, O School has gotten more publicity and work. God is faithful to us even as we are faithful with what He has given us. For us who teach at O School, success is when students' lives changes through our interaction, whether in character or attitude. I was telling my wife that it doesn't matter if the students don't become skilled in dancing - it matters more that they pick up what they need to get ahead in life...it could be learning things in a few way or seeing a different perspective of doing things. When they understand the principle you impart, you can see the change in their work in class, in their attitude. Visit O School at www.oschool.com.sg
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