Tangtang
Sofa Friends
Mirrors.
Echoes.
Uncharted ways of living.
They are our friends.
Welcome to the OnTheSofa living room.
Meet our Sofa Friends,
And rediscover yourself.
Creative & Production by Dandan Ouyang
Photography by Mengchen Sun
Ballet Dancer & Trainer
On the stage, Tangtang gracefully anchors her entire body weight onto a mere few square centimeters at the tips of her toes. Her delicate, airy silhouette and the gravity-defying visual illusion stem from an absolute, precise command over her muscles and strength. As a retired ballet dancer, Tangtang understands this better than anyone: ballet is a cruel art, an eternal dialogue between agony and beauty.
Q: How did your journey with ballet begin?
A: I started taking beginner classes at five and a half. Whenever I saw the professional students, everything about them—their leotards, soft shoes, tights, right down to their Russian-style buns—fascinated me. They just had this incredible aura. That’s when a little goal took root: I wanted to become just like them. At eleven, after passing my auditions, I finally became a professional ballet student.
Q: Have you explored other dance genres? What makes ballet so different?
A: In school, Chinese dance, character dance, historical dance, and contemporary dance were all mandatory. Because each style stems from a different culture and origin, they have their own training goals, technical systems, and standards.
Ballet, however, is arguably the most rigorous. It’s all about pushing for the absolute maximum extension of your movements. It also has this incredible geometric aesthetic. If you trace a dancer’s movements and lines, you essentially map out geometric shapes. I really love that strictness and precision.
Q: Of all the ballets you’ve performed, do you have a favorite piece or role? What moves you about it?
A: I absolutely love George Balanchine’s Jewels. They say Van Cleef & Arpels inspired it. It’s unique because there’s no storyline. Balanchine himself said it wasn’t meant to tell a story about jewelry, but to capture the spiritual essence of the gems through movement.
The piece is split into three acts, each with a distinct vibe: Rubies brings the vibrant, upbeat energy of American Broadway; Diamonds channels the grandeur of Russian classicism; but my personal favorite is Emeralds—it just breathes the pure romance of France.
Q: People usually associate ballet dancers with lightness, slender frames, and softness. Yet, the grueling training requires immense muscular strength and mental grit. How has your ballet background shaped your life and aesthetic?
A: Anyone who studies dance understands this: from a very young age, we are put through intense physical and mental trials. To survive it, you need complete synergy between the teachers, the parents, and yourself.
If anything, this experience gave me a sense of clarity. It taught me to face life and its hardships with an open, grateful, and optimistic mind. Beauty is often forged through suffering, and behind true strength, there is always a quiet accumulation of life experience and relentless persistence.
Q: Do you have any other workout routines outside of ballet?
A: As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been looking for a practice to help heal the old injuries left by my career. About a year ago, I found Gyrotonic. It’s a beautifully intelligent system. Not only does it release joint tension, but it also guides you to look inward and feel the flow of your own mind. I feel completely free and unbound when I practice; I walk away from every session feeling light and restored.
Q: What do you usually do on the sofa?
A: I sink deep into it—put on a favorite vinyl record, grab some snacks, scroll through my phone for an interesting movie, and just hit "cast to screen"!
Tangtang wears Sofa Cotton T-Shirt 'The Traveler' Pointe;
Sofa Linen Shirt 'The Gardener' Amethyst/Degas;
Sofa Cotton Tank Top 'The Étoile' Ebony;
carries Sofa baobao 'The Plié' Cameo.