Have you ever felt like you were in a dream, even when you actually go to work, walk around and talk to people? Everything taking place around you is real, but for you, all of them seem like illusions that pass you by and you can't grasp them.

The answer from Chinese dancer Wang Jianhui (pictured below, at center) from Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT) is positive.

Due to busy life schedules processed often at a fast pace, Wang, like many others today, experiences such fragile moments, when it's hard to really focus and make sense of what's going on.

Combining this illusive experience with inspiration from Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke's work A Walk, Wang worked with Shanghai's homegrown dance group D.Lab to create Boundary, a new show that runs Friday to Sunday at Shanghai Grand Theatre (300 People's Avenue).

It's the first time for D.Lab to collaborate with dancers from NDT, a multiple-award-winning dance theater group formed in 1959.

The Shanghai group's performances, such as Love and Invisible Cities, have been sold-out showings.

Desolation and communication

Boundary is made up of two independent contemporary dances, the 25-minute-long Awakening by Wang and 35-minute-long You Told Me You Loved Me by artistic collective KheN, featuring former NDT dancer Kevin Polak and his wife, Ning Xi.

According to Duan Jingting, founder of D.Lab who also plays a part in Awakening, Boundary discusses the relationship of desolation and communication.

You Told Me You Loved Me was created in 2013 as an environmental theater piece that has been performed at public spaces such as cafes, restaurants and even on the street.

It takes inspiration from the couple's real love experiences and delivers to the audience different emotions in a relationship.

While You Told Me You Loved Me discusses the boundary between two lovers, Wang uses Awakening to ponder the boundary between an individual and the world.

Awakening follows a process of a person gradually awakening from a deep slumber after going through a variety of moods from real life in his dreams.

Dreams here allude to the illusive experiences of people in which they lose control of themselves, while waking is a process of enhancing one's self-awareness.

"It's about communicating with oneself, which I believe is very important in our lifetime," Wang said of his intentions with the piece.

"Because if a person is unable to calm down to listen to his or her own heart, he or she will never truly embrace life and overcome any challenges."

Dancers rehearse for Awakening. Photos: Courtesy of D.Lab

Feeling the difference

Awakening, which marks the first time Wang collaborated with a Chinese dance group after he joined NDT six years ago, has become a new challenge in his career as well.

Over the years, Wang has worked with a stellar list of choreographers and dancers, including Jirí Kylián, an officer of the Orange Order in the Netherlands and winner of Golden Lyon Award in Venice, and Laurence Olivier Award nominee Sol Léon & Paul Lightfoot.

On Awakening, he has only 21 days for production and rehearsals, and in the past three weeks, he has been working 12 hours a day to polish the show to the finest detail.

Apart from Chuck Jones, who has been dancing with NDT for five years, the other five dancers in the show are all from D.Lab.

Both challenging and rewarding

"I constantly remind my dancers that rehearsal is two-way, as they're not limited to only copy what I say, but also they should have their own voices," said Wang, noting that communication with domestic-trained dancers was both challenging and rewarding.

"I'll assign them with tasks such as to create movements to achieve certain emotions, and later I'll polish and integrate these movements into the whole structure. During the process I'm also inspired by them."

Duan Jingting has been an admirer of Wang ever since she watched a show of NDT in Shanghai last year.

In her eyes, Wang has his own unique charisma that distinguishes him from other NDT dancers.

"He is extremely attentive of every detail and transition in the performance. How movements flow and how dancers respond to each other, these are the things that seem easy but are actually the most difficult," Duan told the Global Times.

The show, Wang said, will continue his abstract style that invites the audience to think in a new world created on-stage through dance movements, music, lights and costume.

The music will feature a variety of sounds from drums, electronic piano, whispers and poetry readings. The lighting designer is from NDT, as well.

Tickets: 80 yuan ($11.98) to 580 yuan

Call 400-106-8686 for details