Theater
Operatic diva Wei Hai-min (魏海敏) teams up with her mentor Mei Baojiu (梅葆玖), son and successor of Beijing opera legend Mei Lanfang (梅蘭芳), for a special tribute to the Mei school of Beijing opera. The performances will include classics such as Farewell My Concubine (霸王別姬), Phoenix Returns to the Nest (鳳還巢) and Scattering Flowers (黛玉葬花).
■ National Theater, Taipei City
Photo Courtesy of Century Contemporary Dance CompanY
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$500 to NT$2,500, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Back to the Eight Immortals (鮮人跳), the latest production by Century Contemporary Dance Company (世紀當代舞團), is a collaboration between eight choreographers and eight artists from different fields who re-interpret the Chinese legend of the eight immortals.
Photo Courtesy of NTCH
■ Experimental Theater, Taipei City
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
■ All shows are sold out except tomorrow’s matinee. Tickets are NT$500, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Photo: Taipei Times
Written and directed by Chang Chia-jung (張嘉容) when she was an artist in residency in Paris last year, La Belle Dormeuse (美麗沉睡者) deals with the themes of love, social expectations and self-fulfillment and features four performers from France and Taiwan.
■ Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914), Fruit Wine Building (果酒禮堂), 1, Bade Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市八德路一段1號)
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30pm and 7:30pm
Photo: Taipei Times
■ Tickets are NT$600, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Children of God (上帝之子) is a theatrical rendition of The Lathe of Heaven, a 1971 science fiction novel by Ursula Kroeber Le Guin. The story revolves around a character named George Orr whose dreams alter reality.
■ Wenshan Theater (文山劇場), 32 Jingwen St, Taipei City (台北市景文街32號)
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$500, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Green Ray Theater (綠光劇團) presents director/playwright Wu Nien-jen’s (吳念真) acclaimed Human Condition (人間條件) series. Human Condition II: Those Men in Her Life (人間條件二:她和她生命中的男人們) recounts the story of two women who hid three fugitives during the 228 Incident.
■ Metropolitan Hall (城市舞台), 25, Bade Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市八德路三段25號)
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
■ NT$600 to NT$5,000, available through ERA ticketing or online at www.tickets.com.tw
Classical music
Mercedes-Benz 125th Anniversary Concert Series 2 — Lin Cho-liang Recital (Mercedes-Benz 125週年世紀音樂會2011系列二:林昭亮小提琴獨奏會) presents world-renowned violinist Lin Cho-liang (林昭亮) performing a program that will include Stravinsky’s Suite Italienne, Ravel’s Violin Sonata in G Major, Debussy’s Beau Soir, Poulenc’s Sonata for Violin and Piano, Op. 119, and Liszt’s Grand Duo Concertante, S. 128. He will be accompanied on piano by Jon Kimura Parker.
■ Today at 7:30pm (Tainan) and Sunday at 7:30pm (Taipei)
■ Tainan Municipal Cultural Center Performance Hall (台南市立文化中心演藝廳), 332, Jhonghua E Rd Sec 3, Greater Tainan (台南市中華東路三段332號) and the National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$800 to NT$2,500 for Tainan and NT$800 to NT$3,000 for Taipei, available through ERA ticketing or online at www.tickets.com.tw
Chen Ruei-bin — Masters of East and West (陳瑞斌:東西方大師同台競技音樂會) brings Taiwan-born, Austria-based pianist Chen Ruei-bin (陳瑞斌) back home to perform with violinist Lee Gee (李季), viola virtuoso Justin Chen (陳之珩) and cellist Victor Shpiller in a program that includes Brahms’ Piano Quartet in G Minor, Op. 25 and Dvorak’s Piano Quartet in E flat Major Op. 87.
■ Sunday at 7:30pm
■ Zhongshan Hall (台北市中山堂), 98 Yanping S Rd, Taipei City (台北市延平南路98號)
■ Tickets are NT$500 to NT$4,800; available through ERA ticketing or online at www.tickets.com.tw
One Sigh, One World (一個嘆息一個世界) has guest conductor Francesco Angelico taking the helm in front of the National Symphony Orchestra (國家交響樂團) in a concert featuring piano soloist Louis Lortie. The program will include Webern’s Funf Stucke, Op. 10, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, Haydn’s Symphony No. 90 in C Major, and Schoenberg’s Chamber Symphony No. 1.
■ Tomorrow at 7:30pm
■ National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$1,500, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Contemporary
Legacy Taipei, located in a former warehouse at Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914), hosts top Taiwanese pop performers and international acts. Tonight the venue hosts a trio of popular live bands: funk rockers Coach (教練樂隊), pop-punk group The Fen-Fens (紛紛樂團) and alt-grunge rockers Monkey Pilot (猴子飛行員). Tomorrow’s show with Mando-pop singer Yen-j (嚴爵) is sold out. On Wednesday, it’s experimental solo performer Wang Yu-chun (王榆鈞) and post-rock band Goosander (川秋沙).
■ Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914), Center Five Hall (中五館), 1, Bade Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市八德路一段1號)
■ All shows start at 8pm, except Wednesday concerts, which start at 8:30pm
■ NT$500 tonight, sold out tomorrow, NT$500 on Wednesday (NT$400). Tickets for the venue’s concerts can be purchased at ERA ticketing outlets, online through www.ticket.com.tw or at www.legacy.com.tw or 7-Eleven ibon kiosks
Tonight indie rock club Revolver hosts a party titled Deep Fried House 2 and featuring DJs Soundsquash, Petstov, Mini Jay and Yoshi. Tomorrow it’s the Soul, Sweat & Swank show with DJ Marcus Aurelius.
■ 1-2, Roosevelt Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路一段1-2號), tel: (02) 3393-1678
■ Show starts at 10:30pm tonight and 11pm tomorrow
■ Entrance is NT$200 tonight and NT$300 tomorrow
The Wall (這牆), Taipei’s most prominent venue for indie rock artists, hosts Hong Kong Canto-pop singer Denise Ho (何韻詩), aka HOCC, tonight. Later on, it’s a dance rock party featuring DJs Ghettochild, Fresco and diNO. Tomorrow and Sunday the venue hosts Japanese glam rock band Last Indies. On Wednesday, up-and-coming electro-rock group Manic Youth and Sick Sheep, Bowz Tiger (包子虎樂團) and noise rockers Sleaze take to the stage. On Thursday, it’s British expat band Transition.
■ B1, 200, Roosevelt Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路四段200號B1), tel: (02) 2930-0162. On the Net: www.thewall.com.tw
■ Shows start at 8pm tonight, tomorrow and Thursday
■ NT$600 tonight (NT$500 in advance) and NT$400 for late night dance party, NT$1,600 (NT$1,500 in advance) tomorrow and Sunday, NT$400 (NT$300 in advance) on Wednesday and Thursday. Tickets for all shows can be purchased online through www.thewall.com.tw or tickets.books.com.tw
Tonight Riverside Cafe (河岸留言) hosts drummer Chang Wen-kuang (張文光), who performs jazz fusion and rock with his quartet. Mando-pop singers Fiona Wu (吳南穎) and Queen (魏如昀) take to the stage tomorrow, and on Sunday it’s male Mando-pop singer Hsu Che-wei (徐哲緯). Monday is the venue’s weekly open jam.
■ B1, 2, Ln 244, Roosevelt Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路三段244巷2號B1), next to Taipower Building (台電大樓), tel: (02) 2368-7310. On the Net: www.riverside.com.tw
■ Show starts tonight at 9:30pm, 9pm on all other nights. For a list of standard songs and ground rules for the open jam, visit the venue’s Web site
■ NT$400 tonight, tomorrow and Sunday, NT$150 on Monday. Tickets can purchased online through www.riverside.com.tw or tickets.books.com.tw
Riverside Live House hosts Mando-pop band PopHolic tonight and Korean-born pop singer Bii tomorrow. On Sunday, it’s American jazz bassist Matthew Garrison, who has played as a backing musician for John McLaughlin, Joe Zawinul and Pat Metheny. Garrison will be performing with his trio.
■ 177 Xining S Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧南路177號), tel: (02) 2370-8805. On the Net: www.riverside.com.tw
■ Show starts at 8:30pm tonight, tomorrow and Sunday
■ Entrance is NT$400 tonight, NT$500 tomorrow and NT$1,200 to NT$1,800 on Sunday, depending on seating area. Tickets can be purchased online through www.riverside.com.tw/livehouse or tickets.books.com.tw
Tonight Witch House (女巫店), an intimate coffeehouse-style venue in the National Taiwan University area, hosts indie rock bands Radicalo and Glory (葛洛力) and Aboriginal folk chanteuse Panai (巴奈)tomorrow night. [See story on page 13.]
■ 7, Ln 56, Xinsheng S Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市新生南路三段56巷7號), tel: (02) 2362-5494. On the Net: www.witchhouse.org
■ Shows start at 9:30pm. Restaurant/bar with queer/feminist bookstore and large collection of board games, open 11am to midnight Sundays through Wednesdays, 11am to 1am Thursdays through Saturdays
■ Entrance for music shows is NT$300
Taike (台客) rockers Children Sucker (表兒) and We Are So Sad (傷心欲絕) play tonight at Underworld (地下社會), a small basement club in Taipei. Brit-pop and grunge group The Capelin (柳葉魚) and post-rock outfit Penguin Bear (企鵝熊愛吃雞肉球) take to the stage tomorrow. On Wednesday, it’s up-and-coming groups CopyPaste (複製貼上) and AssHole Band (愛嘶吼樂團).
■ B1, 45 Shida Rd, Taipei City (台北市師大路45號B1), tel: (02) 2369-0103. On the Net: www.upsaid.com/underworld
■ Shows run from 9pm to 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Underworld is open daily from 9pm, closed on Mondays. Happy hour on Tuesdays and Thursdays before midnight
■ Entrance for music shows is NT$300 on Fridays and Saturdays, which includes one drink. Entrance for Wednesday shows is NT$100
Earl Hines II Jazztet performs cool jazz tonight at Sappho de Base, a late-night lounge bar that hosts mostly live jazz and blues performances. Tomorrow it’s trumpeter Danny Deysher and his quartet. Yohei Jazz Trio performs on Tuesday and Electric Message plays disco funk and acid jazz on Wednesday. Emo Jazz Trio performs on Thursday.
■ B1, 1, Ln 102, Anhe Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市安和路一段102巷1號B1), tel: (02) 2700-5411. On the Net: www.sappho102.biz
■ Shows start at 10pm. The venue is closed on Sundays and Mondays
■ Entrance is NT$150 tonight and NT$200 tomorrow. Admission is free on other nights
EZ5 Live House hosts Mando-pop singers backed by a live band every night. Highlights for the week ahead include Mando-pop songstress Julia Peng (彭佳慧) on Tuesday, and male crooner Shin Lung (辛龍), who performs every Saturday. Acclaimed Aboriginal singer Samingad (紀曉君) performs on Thursdays.
■ 211, Anhe Rd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市安和路二段211號), tel: (02) 2738-3995. On the Net: visit www.ez5.com.tw
■ Shows run from 9:45pm to 12:30am
■ Entrance fee (includes two drinks) ranges from NT$600 to NT$850, depending on the performer
Taipei Swing holds dance socials on Friday nights at Italian restaurant Capone’s, with live music from Taipei blues band Bopomofo (ㄅㄆㄇㄈ). Dancers of all levels welcome. Tomorrow, drummer Abe Nbugu Kenyatta leads a band playing music from his hometown of New Orleans. On Thursday, it’s Japanese blues guitarist Shun Kikuta and his trio.
■ 312, Zhongxiao E Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市忠孝東路四段312號), tel: (02) 2773-3782
■ Live music from 9pm to 11:30pm on Fridays, 8pm to 11:30pm on Saturdays
■ On Fridays, minimum charge of one drink. On Saturdays, minimum charge is NT$300
The Wall (這牆) programs regular live rock shows at Kaohsiung’s Pier 2 Arts Center (高雄駁二藝術特區). Tonight it’s metal groups Anthelion (幻日), Forgiveness (恕) and Losing Art (漂浮者). Popular indie rock band Echo (回聲樂團) takes to the stage tomorrow to promote its new EP.
■ 1 Dayong Rd, Yancheng Dist, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市鹽埕區大勇路1號). On the Net: pier-2.khcc.gov.tw, www.thewall.com.tw
■ Shows start at 7:30pm
■ NT$400 tonight and tomorrow
The Mercury (水星酒館), an indie rock club in Kaohsiung, hosts ska group Mary Bites Kerry and reggae band Otaku 3 tomorrow night.
■ 46 Liwen Rd, Zuoying Dist, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市左營區立文路46號), tel: (07) 550-8617. On the Net: mercurybar.blogspot.com
■ Show starts at 9pm
■ Entrance is NT$150, which includes one drink
Taipei Discussion and Learning meets every Sunday at Cafe Bastille to hear lectures and discuss topics such as philosophy, science, anthropology, globalization and alternative medicine. All discussions and lectures are conducted in English. This Sunday’s topic is titled The Life and Work of Nicola Tesla.
■ Cafe Bastille, 7 Wenzhou St, Taipei City (台北市溫州街7號). Tel (02) 2362-9981
■ 7:45pm, every Sunday
■ Entrance is free. For more information visit www.taipeidiscussionandlearning.blogspot.com
In late October of 1873 the government of Japan decided against sending a military expedition to Korea to force that nation to open trade relations. Across the government supporters of the expedition resigned immediately. The spectacle of revolt by disaffected samurai began to loom over Japanese politics. In January of 1874 disaffected samurai attacked a senior minister in Tokyo. A month later, a group of pro-Korea expedition and anti-foreign elements from Saga prefecture in Kyushu revolted, driven in part by high food prices stemming from poor harvests. Their leader, according to Edward Drea’s classic Japan’s Imperial Army, was a samurai
Located down a sideroad in old Wanhua District (萬華區), Waley Art (水谷藝術) has an established reputation for curating some of the more provocative indie art exhibitions in Taipei. And this month is no exception. Beyond the innocuous facade of a shophouse, the full three stories of the gallery space (including the basement) have been taken over by photographs, installation videos and abstract images courtesy of two creatives who hail from the opposite ends of the earth, Taiwan’s Hsu Yi-ting (許懿婷) and Germany’s Benjamin Janzen. “In 2019, I had an art residency in Europe,” Hsu says. “I met Benjamin in the lobby
April 22 to April 28 The true identity of the mastermind behind the Demon Gang (魔鬼黨) was undoubtedly on the minds of countless schoolchildren in late 1958. In the days leading up to the big reveal, more than 10,000 guesses were sent to Ta Hwa Publishing Co (大華文化社) for a chance to win prizes. The smash success of the comic series Great Battle Against the Demon Gang (大戰魔鬼黨) came as a surprise to author Yeh Hung-chia (葉宏甲), who had long given up on his dream after being jailed for 10 months in 1947 over political cartoons. Protagonist
Peter Brighton was amazed when he found the giant jackfruit. He had been watching it grow on his farm in far north Queensland, and when it came time to pick it from the tree, it was so heavy it needed two people to do the job. “I was surprised when we cut it off and felt how heavy it was,” he says. “I grabbed it and my wife cut it — couldn’t do it by myself, it took two of us.” Weighing in at 45 kilograms, it is the heaviest jackfruit that Brighton has ever grown on his tropical fruit farm, located