The Moscow Classical Ballet canceled all planned performances in Taiwan after eight members of the troupe tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the tally of infected members to eight.
The three female dancers and one male dancer have been placed under isolation, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), told a news conference in Taipei.
As of yesterday, Taiwan had reported 757 cases — including the four new cases — with seven fatalities.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
The dancers’ tests showed cycle threshold (Ct) values of between 31 and 35, but had low virus counts, Chen said.
Although they were seen purchasing items at convenience stores and practicing with colleagues, the risk of the dancers spreading COVID-19 was low as they wore masks when outside of the hotel, and had designated transportation to and from the hotel, Chen added.
On Nov. 29, the ballet company arrived with proof of negative COVID-19 tests issued within three days of their flight, and the members stayed in a hotel during their quarantine, the center said.
Photo: CNA
On Monday, the day after completing the quarantine, all of the troupe members were tested for COVID-19 at the request of event organizer udnFunLife Co Ltd (聯合數位文創).
The results for the four dancers returned positive on Wednesday, although none of them showed any symptoms.
Chen clarified that the dancers did not break any laws as they had not exited the quarantine area, saying that they had shopped at convenience stores when they were under self-management.
Photo: CNA
Those who tested positive have been hospitalized and would be discharged when free of COVID-19 symptoms, Chen said, adding that other troupe members would need to consult the regulations if wanting to leave the country.
Members under home isolation and quarantine are expected to pay for their test afterward, Chen said.
It has been adequately demonstrated that people who test positive after the full 14-day quarantine are not contagious, Chen said.
The center could not force the troupe members to self-isolate after the first members’ test results returned positive for COVID-19, Chen said.
The center had no legal basis to do so, but could only request that the Ministry of Culture and udnFunLife ensure, to the best of their ability, that there would be minimal contact between the performers and audience members, Chen said.
The Moscow Classical Ballet was scheduled to perform Wednesday to Sunday at the National Theater Hall in Taipei and Friday next week to Dec. 27 at the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts, but ticket holders have been promised refunds.
Yesterday, 44 other troupe members requiring isolation initially refused to move out of the Howard Hotel (福華飯店) in Taipei.
Not an official quarantine hotel, the hotel management might be unable to take care of the foreign visitors, Taipei Deputy Mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) said yesterday.
The Taipei City Government has prepared a quarantine facility for the troupe members, Huang said.
The Russian visitors had refused to communicate with the city government, but after Russian diplomats stepped in to help, the dance company agreed to relocate to the designated facility, Taipei Department of Health Commissioner Huang Shier-chieg (黃世傑) said.
The diplomats proposed that the troupe depart on a charter flight, which the center is considering, Huang said, adding that at least they agreed to move to the facility.
Some of the troupe members had doubts about the COVID-19 test results and some wanted to leave Taiwan right away, udnFunLife chairman Lee Yen-fu (李彥甫) said.
Lee said that he hoped the government could clarify its procedures, including when a performance can be staged following the initial quarantine upon arrival and the interval between COVID-19 tests.
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: An official said that Guan Guan’s comments had gone beyond the threshold of free speech, as she advocated for the destruction of the ROC China-born media influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China content that threatens national security, the National Immigration Agency said yesterday. Guan Guan has said many controversial things in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” while expressing hope for expedited “reunification.” The agency received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification last year. After investigating, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and account for her actions. Guan Guan appeared as required,
A strong cold air mass is expected to arrive tonight, bringing a change in weather and a drop in temperature, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The coldest time would be early on Thursday morning, with temperatures in some areas dipping as low as 8°C, it said. Daytime highs yesterday were 22°C to 24°C in northern and eastern Taiwan, and about 25°C to 28°C in the central and southern regions, it said. However, nighttime lows would dip to about 15°C to 16°C in central and northern Taiwan as well as the northeast, and 17°C to 19°C elsewhere, it said. Tropical Storm Nokaen, currently
‘NATO-PLUS’: ‘Our strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific are facing increasing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party,’ US Representative Rob Wittman said The US House of Representatives on Monday released its version of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which includes US$1.15 billion to support security cooperation with Taiwan. The omnibus act, covering US$1.2 trillion of spending, allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative, as well as US$150 million for the replacement of defense articles and reimbursement of defense services provided to Taiwan. The fund allocations were based on the US National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026 that was passed by the US Congress last month and authorized up to US$1 billion to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in support of the
PAPERS, PLEASE: The gang exploited the high value of the passports, selling them at inflated prices to Chinese buyers, who would treat them as ‘invisibility cloaks’ The Yilan District Court has handed four members of a syndicate prison terms ranging from one year and two months to two years and two months for their involvement in a scheme to purchase Taiwanese passports and resell them abroad at a massive markup. A Chinese human smuggling syndicate purchased Taiwanese passports through local criminal networks, exploiting the passports’ visa-free travel privileges to turn a profit of more than 20 times the original price, the court said. Such criminal organizations enable people to impersonate Taiwanese when entering and exiting Taiwan and other countries, undermining social order and the credibility of the nation’s
RSS