From “All Star” to the formation of MIRROR, a talent show turned 12 individuals from amateurs into hot celebrities. As the dance leader of the group, Anson Lo, a professional dancer, exudes explosive energy with every move, his talent undeniable. Having danced alongside many superstars on stage, quietly honing his craft for years, perhaps he never imagined that he would transition from a supporting role on stage to the prominent lead role that captivates audiences today.
Without dance, there would be no Anson Lo. This is not an exaggeration at all. Anson, who has always loved dancing and performing, even dropped out of school for his “dancing dream”, causing disagreements with his family. Even though dancing did not bring him money at the time, it brought him endless happiness and satisfaction. Behind every dance is countless persistence and effort. Because of his persistence, he eventually gained hope. He was recognized by Sister Fa during a performance and invited to participate in “All for One”, and although he only made it to the top 30, he was still chosen to join MIRROR, embarking on a brilliant journey to stardom.
Dance has brought him more than just career achievements, but also confidence and courage standing on stage.
On stage, Anson Lo is sometimes free and easy, sometimes fierce, shining brightly. Combining his appearance and talent, he has gained many fans and been crowned the title of “cult leader,” with countless “disciples” under his wing. In addition to dancing, Anson has gradually expanded into acting, singing, and other different fields. He has participated in the filming of the movie “Fake Girl Group” and starred in the drama series “Uncle’s Love.” With the lovable character Ah Mu, he has won the love of the audience, followed by the release of his sixth personal single “Not Cute Cult Leader,” with a wave of promotional activities one after another, making Anson Lo’s popularity unmatched for a time.
Work came one after another, and we rarely had the opportunity to spend a few hours with him in his tight schedule, and had the chance to sit down and interview him, further understanding his feelings and thoughts. Whenever he talks about the satisfaction brought by work, and recalls his relationship with dancing, his eyes immediately light up, becoming talkative, even bystanders can feel that joy and gratitude.
Before the interview begins, we first arrange for Anson Lo to personally analyze his personality. Putting aside his identity as a member of MIRROR, a dancer, a “leader,” “Ah Lou,” Ah Muk, etc., what kind of person is the real Anson Lo? How does he describe his personality, and how does he interact with others? This is a great opportunity for everyone to get a clearer understanding of the real side of Anson Lo and to understand where his charm lies.
After listening to his monologue, we enter his inner world again, put on his most comfortable clothes, sit on the sofa, feel at home, chat with you casually, and sincerely share his recent feelings with everyone, as well as how important dance is in his life.
“Dancing will always be intertwined with me, it’s an item that I can never separate from forever.”
Since the age of four, Anson Lo has been involved in dancing, and it wasn’t until university that he truly immersed himself in the dance life. Dancing has long been rooted in Anson Lo’s life. He once said, “Dancing takes up three-quarters of Anson Lo’s time.” The gene that makes him dance to the music’s rhythm shows his deep love for dancing, which has been pulsing through his body for a long time. He shared with us, “Every time I do a dance performance on stage, I don’t need to think about too much because I am 100% enjoying it.” As a performer, letting go of technical constraints and fully engaging in the performance is truly enjoying the stage.
When it comes to this year’s achievements, in addition to various performances on camera, we must not overlook Anson’s charisma on the concert stage. In just two and a half years since his debut, he has already completed his second group concert in May of this year. Wearing a striking crimson suit on stage, exuding charm in every gesture, his performance is powerful and eye-catching. Despite having the opportunity to shine on stage, what Anson cares about most is the overall performance on stage.
“The 12 of us can finally come together to complete something, it feels like it’s been a long time.” Even though it’s been three months since the second concert, his tone still carries a sense of nostalgia. Reflecting on the experiences of the two concerts, he said, “After MIRROR’s debut concert, the transition from amateur to artist happened in just over two months, but we immediately faced another concert. I was full of anxiety at the time, and couldn’t believe I had the ability.” The lack of experience made him doubt whether he could handle such a large performance and whether he could really attract so many audience members. Anson jokingly said he was “young and ignorant” at the time, just holding onto a sense of courage and a “do it first, figure it out later” attitude to get through it. Two and a half years later, he is more eager for everyone to see MIRROR’s transformation and progress, rather than just the performance itself.
Performers crave the stage as a lifelong proposition, whether it’s the group performance of 12 Kids at a concert or the dance showcase in a personal MV, for Anson, what are the differences between these two completely different performance experiences?
“Being alone is always a bit lonely, even with a large group of backup dancers behind you, but that feeling is that all the good and bad are fully in your hands,” Anson shared. Loneliness is a source of pressure, although still enjoying the stage, he said before going on stage: “I’m the only one, I have to work harder!” On the other hand, performing together with the other 11 brothers from MIRROR on stage, he said: “It feels like there are many people who can take care of you, or help you make up for your shortcomings, whether singing or dancing, they can share a lot of burden for you.”
“Dancing taught me the most precious thing, which is to be myself.”
From a dance teacher to a member of MIRROR, Anson said that it was definitely a bold decision: “I taught dance for two years, learned for two years before that, totaling only 4 years. Dancing is my comfort zone. Leaving behind 4 years of comfort zone to embrace a new industry, even doing something I didn’t know how to do, at that time I had no knowledge in singing, shooting commercials, etc., so I doubted whether I had enough ability to explore new paths. Looking back now, it was very risky because I didn’t know how far I could go.”
And the fact proves that when he took a chance that day, he got a bigger stage in return. The praise he receives now is definitely worth it for him.
Today we witnessed his natural dance skills, which not only contain the sweat of hard work, but also the sincerity of the performer. Anson recalled a saying from his dance teacher, who said that a person’s character can be shown through their dance, even if the music and dance style are different, personal elements will always seep through the body. He said, “I think the most valuable thing about dancing is that you can’t deceive people.” Only by pouring out the deepest part of your heart and passion for dancing, the performance will be moving.
“Anson Lo dancing freely and at ease.”
Perhaps no one has ever thought that Anson on stage would also feel nervous at times. He said, “When dancing, don’t think too much. Whenever I know I’m about to dance, whether I’m on stage or facing the audience, I always feel a bit nervous. But when the music starts playing, and I take that first leap, I immediately feel relaxed.” He described it as a subtle feeling that he experiences every time. He continued, “Every time I hear the beat of the music, it’s like I can feel each beat appearing in front of me. I always try to accurately capture it, and it gives me a sense of ease, as if the music and my body are connected.” As mentioned above, dance has become a part of him, an instinct when he stands on stage. Anson and dance have always been inseparable.
He even believes that life would be empty without dance.
After his debut, Anson has received numerous opportunities to appear on stage, gradually transitioning from a singer to an all-around artist. Despite feeling excited about the successive opportunities, he has always reserved a special place in his heart for dancing. He shared that recently, he has danced much less compared to when he first debuted, but whenever the topic of “dancing” is brought up, he would excitedly tell the people around him, “Wow! It feels like it’s been a long time since I last danced.” He described it as a feeling of “I miss it, it feels like life is lacking something very important without it.” This is because dancing has always been a significant part of his life.
On the day of the interview, we arranged for him to freestyle to a piece of music. As the music played, without any rehearsal, Anson displayed a natural dancer’s style, with fluent and confident movements, flexible body language, everything just right, winning applause and praise from the audience.
When passion becomes a career, we are all curious about what else he pursues in dance. He shared with us a little dream about dance: “I really want to run a dance school like a big family. When students come, I hope to infect them with the spirit of loving to dance. My goal is that every student who takes my class, no matter how tired, can leave with excitement.” When a person devotes themselves to enjoying the pleasure of dancing, what is called liking, but besides enjoying it, they also hope that others can appreciate its beauty, this deeper emotion may be called love.
“The real me is not as perfect as Amu.”
Before making a debut, the pursuit of breaking through oneself in every performance, performing with a clear conscience, only responsible to oneself. After making a debut, the identity of an artist makes him shoulder the expectations of the audience, each performance also carries a certain amount of pressure, making him more eager to progress. However, there is no standard answer on stage, each performer has their own outline. Even though this new star in front of us has already gained the support of many fans, he humbly states that his current self is just “average”. Besides dancing, we also saw Anson’s breakthrough in the performing arts this year.
The recently popular drama “Uncle’s Love” has sparked a city-wide craze for binge-watching. His portrayal of Ling Shaomu is gentle and delicate, treating Tian Tian (played by Lu Juean) with deep affection, but he has repeatedly suffered heartbreak on the road of love, which is very heart-wrenching. Anson Lo always gives us the impression of being gentle and generous. When everyone thought that Anson was playing the role of Ah Mu with his true colors, he modestly said, “I think Ah Mu is a 100% gentle person. He is always caring towards his colleagues and friends. But the real me is more bold towards my closest ones, not as gentle as everyone imagines. Ah Mu is a very perfect man, but I am not.”
In dealing with a relationship, Amu and Anson are completely different. Anson doesn’t see himself as great like Amu, quietly exiting a relationship to fulfill someone else. On the contrary, in reality, he is the proactive one, choosing to communicate actively in any relationship. He said, “I like to be honest, can’t stand avoiding problems, I will bring up any issues.” Faced with Amu’s character who always thinks of others, he said a heart-wrenching sentence: “So this world can be so lonely.”
Besides the recent hit “Uncle’s Love”, earlier collaborations with the MIRROR brothers in “Men’s Volleyball, Women’s Volleyball”, Taiwanese drama “Psychic School”, and the movie “Fake Girl Group”, among many other performances, transitioning from a singing performer to an actor, is acting more challenging for him?
He slowly said, “After personally experiencing acting, I found out that it’s not as terrifying as I thought.” Anson recalled his first performance, feeling so nervous that he would sweat even when saying a line. With accumulated experience, he has slowly become accustomed to the acting process and learned to relax a bit. Anson shared that before officially appearing in “Uncle”, he deliberately watched the original Japanese version of the drama. Deeply moved by the Japanese actors’ performances, he hoped to bring his character to life. Saying that he “didn’t want to disappoint the original creators,” he prepared a playlist for the character of Ah Mu in order to better grasp the character’s emotions. With this kind of attitude, we all know that besides dancing, he takes every performance opportunity seriously.
“I want to explore different aspects of Anson Lo further.”
Anson’s current roles are mainly gentle and warm male characters. Although there are countless ways to interpret tenderness, this actor who hopes to break through himself still wants to explore more aspects of himself. He shares that every time he immerses himself in a role, he incorporates his own experiences and memories to make the character more human. He openly expresses his desire to try roles with great personality contrasts, whether cunning or irritable, he is curious about different aspects of himself. When asked what kind of actor he hopes to become, he said he hopes to become an actor who absolutely believes in the script. He said, “In ‘Uncle’, I realized that the success of every performance depends on whether the actor believes in the script enough, only by believing in the character’s experiences can you 100% fit in the role.” In his not too many but not too few acting experiences, Anson has gradually grasped the theory of acting and applied it in every performance, his growth in the performing arts is traceable.
“Whether on stage or in acting, you must show your most authentic self, so the audience will like it.”
Whether it’s an actor, a dancer, or a singer, as a performer, standing on stage, one can only give it their all. And for Anson, what is the real difference between acting and dancing?
After thinking for a while, he replied, “I found that the performance on stage is not much different from acting. Even though the nature of the two is different, the required psychological qualities are actually similar. You must be honest in both.” On stage, you need to put all your energy into the music, and acting is almost the same. “If at that moment you don’t believe in your own energy, the audience won’t feel it.” From dancing to acting, there is no groundbreaking theory, sincerity has always been the most important key.
“I hope Anson Lo can still maintain the same passion as before”
He said that even if you are not an idol, everyone will have a self-protection mechanism. When interacting with others, they always want to show their strongest side in front of others. However, he believes, “Whether on stage or acting, you have to show your most authentic self, then the audience will like it.”
At the end of the interview, we asked him, “What kind of person do you most want Anson Lo to become?”
He smiled and replied, “I hope Anson Lo becomes a passionate person.” It’s not about achieving fame and success, just like returning to the star-making scene of the past, seeing that boy who walked into the unknown for his ideals. “Whether it’s five years or ten years from now, I hope Anson Lo can still maintain his original passion, always maintaining a thirst for work, and never losing his passion for people and things.”
Whether it’s a singing stage or an acting stage, as long as he stands on it, you can always feel a sense of dedication to performance from him. The stage is redemption, it is Lu Hanting’s faith, and his charm and sincere attitude towards the performance have also become the faith of his fans. Looking back on the traces on the stage today, this performer earnestly entrusts his future self.
I hope that in the future, Anson Lo can bring this courage to pursue his dreams and his passion for performance to the future, showing us more aspects of himself.
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Executive Producer: Angus Mok
Producer: Vicky Wai
Photography: Matt Yau
Videography: Anson Chan, Andy Lee
Styling: Vicky Wai
Make Up: Rainbow Chung @ Annie.G Chan Makeup
Hair: Denny Ku @ Chic Private i Salon
Video Editor: Anson Chan
Editor: Carson Lin, Ruby Yiu
Designer: Tanna Cheng
Jewellery: BVLGARI
Wardrobe: Gucci, Celine, Tom Ford, Loewe
