The Taiwan Traditional Theatre Center (臺灣戲曲中心小表演廳) launched its second annual Taiwan Traditional Theatre Festival (臺灣戲曲藝術節) last night with the opening of the One Heart Drama Group’s (一心戲劇團) Me, Myself and I (當迷霧漸散) in the center’s main theater.
The nine-week long festival, which runs through June 2, offers 18 shows that range from traditional Beijing and Taiwanese operas to puppet theater, a Hakka “tea-picking” opera and fusion productions.
The goal is to provide a window into the world of Taiwanese opera and encourage dialogue and exchanges with traditional art groups in other nations.
Photo courtesy of National Guoguang Opera Company
The shows have been grouped into three categories: Taiwan drama (戲曲臺灣), traditional opera (戲曲經典) and the future of drama (戲曲未來).
The latter includes several fusion productions, such as National Guoguang Opera Company’s (國立國光劇團) sold-out production of PHAEDRA (費特兒), a coproduction with Singapore’s Siong Leng Musical Association that interprets the Roman-Greek tragedy about wife of King Theseus of Athens and her lust for her stepson, Hippolytus. Chu Sheng-li (朱勝麗) stars in the title role.
There is also a revival, from May 10 to May 12, of the Party Theater Group’s (同黨劇團) The White Storyteller (白色說書人), first performed in the National Experimental Theater in October 2017, as well as the Contemporary Legend Theatre’s (當代傳奇劇場) Wu Song – The Tiger Warrior (英雄武松), which the troupe took to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last summer, from April 26 to April 28.
Japan’s Kitanodai Gagaku Ensemble, which performs traditional Japanese court dances and music, will perform on the afternoon of April 13.
Unfortunately, the festival’s Web site is only in Chinese (festival.ncfta.gov.tw/index/zh-tw/future/7676), but at least it provides a schedule of performances and links to each show.
All performances will be at the center in Taipei: 751 Wenlin Rd (台北士林區文林路751號), and tickets are available online through the www.artsticket.com.tw site and convenience store ticket kiosks.
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