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Whither Taiwanese theater?

By Noah Buchan
STAFF REPORTER
Sunday, Dec 10, 2006, Page 18

Lu Po-shen, right, on the set of White Shake. The artistic director is unhappy with the state of theater in Taiwan and blames the lack of focus on character development for the problem. PHOTO: NOAH BUCHAN, TAIPEI TIMES

Lu Po-shen (呂柏伸) shudders as I remove the camera from my bag to take his picture. The artistic director of Tainaner Ensemble (台南人劇團), a theater troupe from Tainan whose White Snake (白水) is playing at the National Experimental Theater (國家實驗劇場), is not fond of having his picture taken — an unwillingness that speaks of his humility and desire to avoid the limelight.

Lu's interest in theater began organically. "I was born to become a theater artist," he said. The young Lu devised theater pieces for neighborhood kids to perform, instructing them on how to play their roles. "It was more of a hobby for me," he said. The notion that theater could be a profession never entered his mind until he moved to Taipei and began working with Lanling Theatre Workshop (蘭陵劇坊). "At the time it was a shock. Oh, theater, is kind of profession," he said mimicking the surprise he felt at the time.

His experiences with Lanling spurred him to think seriously about taking a degree in theater, but the universities that he applied to didn't offer the kind of program he wanted. "I initially planned to study television and radio. But then I got an offer from the University of Glasgow to do a double major, one in TV and film and the other in theater." After his undergraduate studies he pursued a master's degree and PhD in theater at Royal Holloway, University of London.

" I think the main problem with Taiwanese plays [is thatyou seldom see good characters." -- Lu Po-shen, artistic director of Tainaner Ensemble PHOTO: NOAH BUCHAN, TAIPEI TIMES

Focusing on U Theater (優劇場) and Contemporary Legend Theater (當代傳奇劇場), Lu's PhD investigates how these troupes are attempting to develop a uniquely Taiwanese theater. And though Lu has yet to finish his thesis, he concludes that Taiwanese theater is difficult to pin down because of its multiplicity of styles and influences.

If Lu is interested in Taiwanese theater from a theoretical perspective, he is more interested in Western theater from the perspective of the stage, especially how Western classics can be adapted into the Taiwanese language. "The language I like is poetic language, like Greek drama or Shakespeare," he said explaining why he typically chooses those scripts over works written by Taiwanese playwrights. "I cannot find any script written by a Taiwanese playwright that interests me."

"I like to see plays with strong characters. When we see Greek drama we can see Agamemnon we can see Orestes or Oedipus — these are strong characters that you will remember. I think the main problem with Taiwanese plays [is that] you seldom see good characters," he said.

According to Lu, the lack of well-developed characters found in scripts written by local playwrights must change before a discernable tradition of Taiwanese theater can emerge. From staging a play to teaching, he emphasizes the importance of the script and how it is used to develop characters.

Lu blames the theatergoing public for not demanding more of the characters on stage, something he calls actor-oriented theater. "I prefer to go to the theater to see actors, not to see a good director or music or style," he said.

Though Lu puts a lot of hard work into his productions and his actors have developed a good reputation, this has not always translated into box office success. "It's not easy to understand our plays, so our plays don't appeal to the general public. And my manager and I sometimes have big fights because he says I only do theater for theater specialists, and not for the general public," Lu said. "But for the development of my theater company … I have to do both. Sometimes I have to do something that I think the audience will like."

Comparing a play like Beauty and the Beast with a play by Samuel Beckett, Lu says that both have artistic merit, but it is only works like Endgame that touch him deeply whereas when Beauty and the Beast is over he thinks no more about it. For Lu, plays that have timeless themes keep him interested and develop his actors' skills.

Lu considers his actors lucky when they play strong characters from Beckett's Endgame or Shakespeare's Macbeth because these works require a considerable amount of skill and understanding to make the characters plausible.

The actors, however, often have difficulty tackling such lofty characters and texts. To overcome this problem, Lu has invited international coaches to train local actors to become more adept at entering into the on-stage roles. For example, before he staged Endgame and Footfalls he invited a Beckett scholar from the US to give a two-week workshop. This year, he invited a Polish director who specializes in Greek chorus to help them with Lysistrata.

Lu's willingness to bring theater specialists from all over the world to Taiwan to develop the actor's talents speaks of the confidence and respect he has for his actors. It also shows that he believes in the actor's development. "I like to see the growth of actors. It is one of my pleasures. I always say to them that if they don't work hard, if they make me feel they are no longer beautiful on stage, there's no point for me to do theater," he said. "They also suffer a lot because they have to meet my expectations. In the rehearsal room I will sometimes make them cry."

Lu said his greatest influence has been Jerzy Grotowski, a Polish director who collaborated with the same group of actors for more than 25 years. And like the filmmaker's approach, Lu believes that the theater's fundamental concern should be the actors' relationship with the audience, and not the sets, lighting or special effects. As a result, the director must develop an intimate relationship with the actors — one that has to be cultivated over a long period of time.

Lu is currently collaborating with two actors on an on-going basis. His future plans are to work with a core group of seven actors. "I can't work with people case by case," he said. He finds that going in and working with a company on a contract basis usually involves a short three-week or one-month collaboration where both parties gain very little from the relationship and the director is usually reduced to working out technical issues.

And it is Lu's interest in helping the actors go deep into the core of the characters combined with a love of plays and the Taiwanese language that has enabled him to evolve from seeing the theater as a job. "For me, theater is [no longer] a profession but a kind of life attitude," he said.
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