First lady Chow Mei-ching (周美青) arrived in Los Angeles on Thursday evening for a transit stop en route to Washington in her capacity as the honorary head of Cloud Gate Dance Theatre.
At the invitation of Cloud Gate founder Lin Hwai-min (林懷民), Chow is joining the troupe during two stops on its North American tour, the US capital and the Cultural Olympiad in Vancouver, Canada.
Shortly before her arrival, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) also landed in Los Angeles for an overnight stopover on his way home after a trip to Honduras and the Dominican Republic.
Chow is traveling with Council for Cultural Affairs Minister Emile Sheng (盛治仁). Representative to the US Jason Yuan (袁健生) was scheduled to accompany Chow on the flight from Los Angeles to Washington.
Cloud Gate was to perform Lin’s 1998 classic Moon Water at the Kennedy Center in Washington last night and tonight, and at the Cultural Olympiad on Friday and next Saturday.
Chow joined Cloud Gate last September for a charity performance at Dawang Primary School in Taitung County after the area was devastated by Typhoon Morakot.
After that performance, Lin invited her to join the group on its North American tour and Chow accepted.
Cloud Gate management said Chow has said she recognizes how challenging it must be for the troupe to constantly travel around the world and that she was glad she could do something to encourage the dancers along the way.
U-Theatre (優人神鼓), Chai Found Music Workshop (采風樂坊) and LAFA & Artists (拉芳) have also been invited to perform at the Vancouver Cultural Olympiad, which runs through March 21.
U-Theatre will perform Sound of the Ocean on March 12 and March 13, Chai Found Music Workshop will give a concert on March 14 and LAFA will perform a mixed bill on March 18 and March 19.
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