Theater
In The Drought Goddess (大神魃), by Ethan Chen Production House (野墨坊), the Yellow Emperor (Huang Di, 黃帝) banishes his daughter because he fears that she has become too powerful after she helps him win an important battle. [See story on Page 15.] The traditional opera, which is the second production in the New Idea Theater Festival (新點子劇展) and features beiguan (北管) and nanguan (南管) music, examines how the daughter copes with loneliness.
▲National Experimental Theater, Taipei City
▲Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm and tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30pm
▲Tickets are NT$500, available through NTCH ticketing
The Taipei National University of the Arts’ (國立台北藝術大學) theater department will stage two short plays: For All Time, a one-act play by Rita Wellman that tells the tragic story of a group of women dealing with loss; and an adaptation of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Bremer Freiheit, which is based on the life of 19th-century serial killer Geesche Gottfried.
▲Taipei National University of the Arts — Performing Arts Center (國立台北藝術大學展演藝術中心戲劇廳), 1, Xueyuan Rd, Beitou Dist, Taipei City (台北市北投區學園路1號)
▲Today and tomorrow at 7:30pm and tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30pm
▲Tickets are NT$350, available through NTCH ticketing
Human Condition (人間條件), Green Ray Theater’s (綠光劇團) newest play, centers on the life of a 17-year-old girl who rebels against her dysfunctional family’s listless existence.
▲Sun Yat-sen Hall of the National Sun Yat-sen University Art Center (高雄中山大學逸仙館), 70 Lienhai Rd, Kaohsiung City (高雄市蓮海路70號)
▲Tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm
▲Tickets are NT$500 to NT$2,000, available through ERA ticketing
The Little Matches Girl (賣番仔火的小女孩) by Taiyuan Puppet Theater Company (台原偶戲團) tells the story of a greedy grandmother who forces her granddaughter to work in a factory that makes matches. The girl befriends a little boy and together they discover that the matches are alive. One night, a disaster threatens the lives of both children and their match friends.
Neo-sixties pop act Tahiti 80, an upbeat quartet from France who sing in English, perform tonight at The Wall. The repertoire has been touring in Asia to promote its recently released fourth album, Activity Center, and is especially popular in Japan, where the group’s 2000 album Puzzle sold 50,000 units during the first six weeks after its release. Tahiti 80 is known for lead singer Xavier Boyer’s innocently sweet falsettos and combining elements from classic 1960s pop, disco, 1970s AM radio, and French pop with a deft contemporary touch. To learn more about the band, visit www.myspace.com/tahiti80
▲The Wall (這牆), B1, 200, Roosevelt Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路四段200號B1). Call (02) 2930-0162 or visit www.the-wall.com.tw for more information
▲Tonight at 8pm
▲Admission is NT$1,200 in advance (tickets can be purchased at the venue) or NT$1,400 at the door
World music label Trees Music and Art hosts its annual winter party tomorrow night at Riverside Live House, located at the historic Red House Theater (西門紅樓).
The show features collaborative performances between musicians of different genres and cultures from Taiwan and abroad. Performers include Hakka singer-songwriter Lin Sheng-xiang (林生祥); Japanese guitarist Ken Ohtake (大竹研); Atayal singer Inka Mbing (雲力思); Chinese classical musician Chung Yufeng (鍾玉鳳); female Hakka singer Lo Sirong (羅思容); American blues and roots musician David Chen; and Amis blues and folk group The Betel Nuts Brothers (檳榔兄弟).
▲Riverside Live House (河岸留言西門紅樓展演館), 177 Xining S Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧南路177號). For more information call (02) 2370-8805 or go to www.riverside.com.tw
▲Tomorrow night at 8pm
▲Tickets are NT$500; available at the door or through tickets.books.com.tw. For more information contact Trees Music and Art at (02) 2341-3491 or visit blog.roodo.com/treesmusicart for more details
▲Nadou Theater (納豆劇場), 79 Xining N Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧北路79號)
▲Tomorrow at 3pm
▲Tickets are NT$200, available through NTCH ticketing
Classical music
2008 Christmas Concert — Santa Is Gone? (2008聖誕音樂會－聖誕老公公不見了) is a family concert featuring the Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Chorus (台北愛樂室內合唱團), the Philharmonic Theater Workshop (愛樂劇工廠) and the jazz orchestra of the Taipei Philharmonic (台北愛樂青年管弦樂團附設爵士樂團) under the direction of Hsieh Shu-jing (謝淑靖) and conducted by Ku Yu-chong (古育仲). The program includes music from Polar Express and Christmas favorites such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Silent Night and Frosty the Snowman.
▲Today at 7:30pm and tomorrow 2:30pm
▲National Concert Hall, Taipei City
▲Tickets are NT$400 to NT$1,200, available through NTCH ticketing
Star Light, Dreams and Christmas Carols — Evergreen Symphony Orchestra Charity Concert (星燦.夢想.耶誕頌.長榮交響樂團 — Xmas慈善音樂會) opens with Anderson’s Christmas Festival. Blind soprano Chu Wan-hua (朱萬花), who is also the Secretary General of the Arts Promotion Association for the Disabled (APAD) and longtime promoter of disabled musicians, will sing Moonlight Serenade (月光小夜曲), Twilight on the Tamsui River (淡水暮色), When I Open My Heart (打開心內的門窗), The Green Island Serenade (綠島小夜曲) and other well-known Taiwanese folk songs. Blind clarinetist Chang Lin-fong (張林峰) will perform in Weber’s Clarinet Concerto No. 2. All proceeds from this concert will be given to APAD to help create more opportunities for disabled performers. The Evergreen Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by Gernot Schmalfuss. More information on the concert can be found at www.orchestra.evergreen.com.tw
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