Playing out the human condition

Human Condition , scriptwriter Wu Nien-jen's (吳念真) first foray into the theater, which premiered back in 2001, is being revived this weekend.

Popular demand for this tried and proven stage play shows that -- despite SARS -- local audiences are still willing to step out if they know they will be getting value for money.

Of course, this really depends on what you expect to see when you go to the theater. If it is a live version of a television soap opera, then you won't be disappointed, for Wu's scriptwriting background comes through in this 11-act drama that manages to include many stereotypical Taiwanese situations and characters.

Green Ray's own history as a producer of musicals is also very much in evidence, and while naturalism is clearly aimed at, the action has a stagey quality that has you expecting the stars to break into song at any moment.

They don't, but this is still a very long way from the bleak worlds of silent suffering that are portrayed in some of Wu's most notable works, such as Hou Hsiao-hsien's (侯孝賢) Dust in the Wind (戀戀風城) and City of Sadness (悲情城市) and Wang Tung's (王童) Hill of No Return (無言的山丘).

The conventions of Taiwanese musical drama, with its exaggerated gestures and variety show humor, might not be to everyone's taste, but Human Condition is, for all that, a serious attempt to explore social and political issues.

While the show is performed in a mixture of Mandarin and Taiwanese (thereby taxing the language skills of even long-term foreign residents), for people interested in Taiwan, and how Taiwanese perceive themselves, Human Condition serves as an interesting showcase.

Human Condition has a big cast and makes use of the many friends Green Ray has collected in its 10-year history.

Not least among the unexpected performers is Lee Yung-feng (李永豐), the executive director of the Paper Windmill Cultural Foundation (紙風車文教基金會), who is now better known for his role as an arts administrator and social activist than as an actor. (Paper Windmill is currently operating the Red Playhouse theater in Hsimenting.)

Tang Mei-yun (唐美雲), the owner-director of the Tang Mei-yun Ke-tsai Opera troupe, playing a godmother, strikes another unfamiliar note, as does Jian Chih-chung (簡志忠), the CEO of the Eurasian Publishing Group (圓神出版), who plays the CEO of a big company.

Such celebrity cameos are common practice and do give the show the vivaciousness and good humor of an amateur production, which makes up somewhat for the uneven quality of the acting.

Human Condition will be performed at the National Theater Taipei today, tomorrow and Sunday at 7:30pm and tomorrow and Sunday 2:30pm.

Tickets are NT$350 to NT$1,500 available through ERA ticketing.