Dancing has never been a question of love or hate for Wang, it is merely a way of life. She began ballet at the age of 4, and by 10 she was practicing on pointe.

"My mom was just trying it out for me and I really loved it, so I kept going with it," Wang says. "It is so much a part of me, I don't think that if I stopped I would be happy. It's definitely a place where I can just get away from things." It is also a way to take others away from their day-to-day lives. "Dance is a really good way of expressing feelings and emotions, but also reaching out to other people and showing them things through dance."

Wang displayed promise from the beginning of her dance career, rapidly advancing and being awarded a coveted scholarship to the Joffrey Ballet School in New York when she was 10 years old. After she returned, Wang began studying with Beijing dance master Yong Yao, who runs two studios on Prospect Road in Saratoga.

After graduating from Saratoga High School in 1998, Wang continued to study with Yao as she attended UC-Berkeley, which recently awarded her a degree in dance and performance studies.

While at Berkeley, Wang performed with the Bay Area Repertory Dance company, traveling throughout the world and claiming top prizes in numerous dance competitions. Since her graduation, Wang has spent the majority of her time with the Chinese Performing Artists of America, placing herself as the youngest principal dancer in the company.

The young dancer will likely garner even more attention as she performs the lead in both "Yellow River!" and "Butterfly Lovers" for the Symphonic Chinese Ballet, coming to the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts on June 28 as part of a joint production between the CPAA and the Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley Orchestra.

Wang says she was attracted to the production because of its challenging and unique elements. With roots in ballet, Chinese dance graces through familiar territory, but it is still a very distinct art. "There is a lot of feeling" in Chinese dance, Wang says. "It is very different, and very unique," from traditional ballet. "I enjoy Chinese dance because it is so different, and it's not so structured."

Wang became acquainted with Chinese dance and the CPAA through Yao, who is the organization's artistic director.

Yao says Chinese dance is very difficult, particularly for American dancers. "Even if you are born into a Chinese family, the culture is different. They are still Americans," he says. Wang "understands the cultural reasons for the dance movements," which are very specific. Yao believes Wang has been able to grasp the subtle nuances of Chinese dance, unlike many Chinese-Americans because of her penchant for studying the culture.

"I have seen her grow up," he says. "It's not just fun for her. It started that way, but later on she became really serious. For me, it's amazing. She works really hard and she is smart."

Of course, hours of practice have also been essential.

Rehearsals for the symphonic ballet began in March, with practice every day for four hours. The week leading up to the performance, Wang practiced nearly eight hours each day. Her sessions always began with a warm-up on the barre, including traditional pliè movements (bending at the knee), tendu's (stretches) and ronds de jambe (circular movements of the leg). Then, for the next two to three hours, Wang would set her rosin coated slippers to the floor, flexing, bending, leaping, and twirling along with the male lead for each piece.

For all of her accomplishments, Wang does not analyze much of her career or the praise she receives. "I never really thought about it," she says candidly. "With whatever is given to me, I take it as it is."

She can say, however, that she is excited about the upcoming production—excited, but not anxious. "I never did get nervous," she says of performing. "It's probably because I started so young."

To put herself in character, Wang says she learns the story and discovers what the motivations are for each personality. "I find out what I am supposed to be expressing and I take that and then draw from my life, stories, or movies. You think of how you feel when it's that emotion. You need to get inside of yourself before bringing it out to people. You must feel it," she says.

After the Symphonic Chinese Ballet performance, Wang is hoping to attend Tsing Hua University in Taiwan to study Chinese literature and history, and possibly teach modern dance, which she also studied while at Berkeley.

In spite of her desire to travel, Wang feels no need to travel to the East Coast to pursue a dancing career. Although the professional ballet scene is still clustered in New York, Wang says the West Coast, particularly San Francisco, is steadily rising in rank. And more importantly, it has a familiar feeling to it. "Dance on the East Coast is more competitive, it's every person for themselves," she says. "Over here, it's like a family."

The "Symphonic Chinese Ballet" will be held on June 28 at 8 p.m. at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets are $25­100 and are available by calling 408.973.8276 or 408.873.8576. For more information visit http://www.chineseperformingarts.org.