Lin's sensuous choreography draws from many sources, but his heritage from Beijing opera is evident in many ways. But even as he allows a minute or so of actual Beijing opera singing and movement to enter into this new work, Lin is adamant in shunning "exoticism" which he regards as being driven primarily by consumerism. Speaking about his artistic foundations in Chinese traditional performance, Lin said: "I don't want to hock my heritage. I am happy that I have it. But it must find its own way to `shine' in the modern world. It is something it must do on its own."
Having left the trappings of opera behind him, he acknowledges a profound debt. "Performance is like a duck swimming in a pond. You look at it and it is very graceful. But if you look below the water, its feet are paddling furiously. Tradition does what the duck's feet do. It makes the beauty and grace above the water possible." Since he put opera behind him, Lin has been exposed to the varied scene of modern performance, but continues to remain true to the idea of tradition. "You see, you can't just take other people's ideas and use them. When I watch a performance I get ideas. These ideas are ways of pushing myself forward. But I must digest this first. I don't want what I am not able to digest."
This accounts for the integrity that is evident in Lin's dance. He is not dancing an idea. He is the idea. This process of internalization takes time, and Lin is somewhat critical of the desire of many contemporary dancers in Taiwan whose work he believes is too conceptual.
"The idea might be very good, but it is au brut," he said, "for me, it is technique that provides freedom, it becomes part of you. ? It's like an opera performer learning to move with the heavy costume he wears. It becomes another layer of himself."
In Bastard, Lin says he has stripped away the cloths, the sets and other outward ornamentation, but his dance retains the essence of the style he learned as a child. "It is like roasting a Beijing duck," he joked. "First you must dry it out in the wind, then roast it until the oil starts to come out. It is a long process. In Bastard, I am the roast duck." It is a process of stripping everything away until all that is left is what he has made himself into.
Lin began thinking about creating Bastard two years ago, and the multimedia elements fit in perfectly with the themes of the Formosa International Arts Festival, which this year has imported a number of works featuring multiple disciplines to illustrate its theme of multiplicity. It is somewhat ironic that with Bastard, it is through the cooperation of the French Institute that Taiwan audiences will have the chance to see the work of two important Taiwan artists. But ultimately, for Lin as for an increasingly large number of others, the labels of nationality, style and discipline are becoming irksome, and ultimately it is "all about finding ways of communicating."
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