After holding performances in Taitung, Tainan and Hsinchu since May 27, the widely talked-about play Ciao Ci-chao (
Presented by the Taitung Theater (
Ciao Ci-chao is adapted from the novel Record of a Golden Lock (
Digging deep
As stage director and script writer Liu Liang-yen (
In those years, female liberation and modernist thought sprouted up after the May Fourth Movement.
Ciao, the main character in the play, has been living the life of a widow after her husband died young. She tries to fight against the hopeless bondage of widowhood by flirting first with her brother-in-law and later with some other men, but all to no avail.
So complaints become the center of her everyday life and they evolve into the major developmental theme throughout the play.
Liu said this is a play about a middle-aged widow who tends to mistreat people around her and hates to face the reality of getting old, by simply hiding herself in nostalgia. In his remarks at a press conference, Liu said that the play is a "homage to the bitch in the 20th century, an
invitation for each melancholic in the 21st century and a cheer for nymphomaniacs."
Mix and match
Unique in its style of performance, the play simultaneously applies the core techniques of Peking Opera and modern dance. Qian Yu-shan (
Qian once said to Liu, "My anger, jealousy, contempt and flirting in this life has all been offered up in this play. After the performance of this play, I'll change to become a simple and happy person."
In addition to Ciao, Liu has created two indispensable characters. A pleasant-looking young female servant is played by Jasmine Wang (
Another notable feature of the production is its stage and costume designs. The main stage scene is all hand-made and is decorated with Shanghai-style hanging papers and paper dolls. Even more eye-catching are the costumes with red flowers, which provide a powerful contrast to the melancholy-filled stage background.
Performance notes:
Who: Taitung Theater (
What: Ciao Ci-Chao (
Where: Play Red House (
When: Friday 7pm; Saturday 7pm; Sunday 2pm.
Tickets: NT$600.
Telephone: (02) 3393 9888
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