Playwright, director, actor and singer Tsai Pao-chang (蔡柏璋), the creative force behind Solo Date, K24 and Q&A (Quest & Amnesia Episode II, 二部曲) is back at the National Theater in Taipei with his latest epic production for the Tainaner Ensemble (台南人劇團), The Book of Fate Trilogy One: The Lost Wings (天書第一部:被遺忘的神).
Tsai, the ensemble’s artistic director, has built a reputation for complex, genre-bending works that often center on cross-cultural experiences, gender issues and multilingual characters.
His latest work continues that line. The Lost Wings tells of a tale of heaven, earth and the underworld, centered on a young woman who becomes a stowaway, is forced into the sex trade, becomes delusional and then discovers that she has unusual powers, all the while trying to find a way home to her mother.
Photo courtesy of Chang Chen-zhou
Tsai employs a nonlinear narrative as he explores the issue of discrimination on multiple levels: religion, race, class and sexual orientation.
The show’s mantra could be summed up as “believe in what you cannot see, you will see what you believe.”
Music for the show was composed by Annie Lo (羅恩妮), the stage design is by Huang Yu-han (黃郁涵) and costumes are by Li Yu-sheng (李育昇).
The 12-actor line-up includes Chang Chia-chen (張家禎), Wu Po-fu (吳柏甫) and Jen Jen (廖原慶), while the six dancers include breakdancer Pan Yu-hsun (潘佑熏) of the Boyz in the Hood group.
The show runs about two-and-a-half hours with intermission and is not recommended for children younger than 12.
■ Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm, tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30pm at the National Theater (國家戲劇院), 21-1 Zhongshan S Rd, Taipei City (台北市中山南路21-1號)
■ Tickets are NT$500 to NT$2,500; available at NTCH box offices, online at www.artsticket.com.tw and at convenience store ticketing kiosks.
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