The world of Taiwan's theater has been condensed into a 5m-by-8m hand-woven rattan and bamboo, cocoon-like construction located in the center of Taipei Fine Art Museum's (TFAM, 台北市立美術館) ground floor.
In the two-floor, 8m-tall edifice, six monitors play audio-visual presentations of over 30 performances by theater companies including Cloud Gate (雲門舞集), Shakespeare's Wild Sisters (莎士比亞的妹妹們的劇團), Assignment Theater (差事劇團) and River-gauche Theater Group (河左岸劇團). On the second floor examples of costumes from some of those performances are on display.
After the preview exhibition, the whole ensemble will be shipped to the Czech Republic for the 2007 Prague Quadrennial International Competitive Exhibition of Scenography and Theater Architecture, the world's foremost meeting place for theater professionals, which attracts attendees from over 60 countries. The competition celebrates its 40th anniversary this June.
PHOTOS: COURTESY OF TFAM
Four years ago, when Taiwan's contemporary theater art first appeared at the Prague Quadrennial (PQ), the country's entry won a silver medal for the National Exhibition section, the largest part of the event for which each participating country presents the latest trends and works of its best scenographers and theater directors.
In the hope of further advancing interaction amongst theater industry professionals on a global scale and encouraging students to participate in international events, the Taiwan Association of Theater Technology (TATT,台灣技術劇場協會) held a preliminary competition of its own and selected 20 stage, lighting and costume design pieces out of 126 entries, which are on display in a preview exhibit at TFAM before they will be sent to the PQ competition along with Taiwan's entries for two other sections, the National Exhibition and Architecture and Technology categories.
Three creative scenogaphic designs by theater-majors from National Sun Yat-sen University (國立中山大學) and National Taiwan University (國立台灣大學) have been selected for this year's PQ Scenofest section that invites young theater directors, designers and architects to present contemporary adaptations and spatial creations of the ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes's comedy The Birds.
Chiayi Performing Arts Center (嘉義縣表演藝術中心) has been chosen to represent Taiwan at the PQ's Architecture and Technology section, which showcases innovative theater designs that utilize the latest technology and cutting-edge architectural styles. At the preview exhibition, visitors are shown how traditional spatial limits are broken and audiences situated as one of the main elements in theater.
For those interested in PQ, visit www.pq.cz. More information on Taiwan's exhibitions at the international event can be found at www.tatt-oistat.org.tw/pq07.html.
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