Cloud Gate Dance Theatre is to become the first group from Taiwan to take part in World Ballet Day, a series of live online events featuring the world’s leading dance companies.
Established in 2014 by the Australian Ballet, the Royal Ballet in London and Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet, World Ballet Day, which is on Oct. 19 this year, offers a glimpse into the daily operations of dance groups from around the world, such as their morning classes and rehearsals, as well as exclusive previews of upcoming performances, the event’s Web site says.
Cloud Gate artistic director Cheng Tsung-lung (鄭宗龍) said in a statement on Friday that it was an honor to have the opportunity to dance in the same event as some of the world’s top performers.
Photo: CNA
“With the way performing arts have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, such a global event shows the important role of the arts in bringing people together,” Cheng said.
Cloud Gate, one of the nine groups making their World Ballet Day debut this year, plans to show a live rehearsal in its 40-minute slot, which is to begin at 9pm on Oct. 19 and can be watched on Cloud Gate’s YouTube Channel.
Forty-seven groups are taking part in this year’s event, with members of the public encouraged to share online a video clip of themselves dancing with the hashtag #worldballetday, Cloud Gate said.
Meanwhile, for dance enthusiasts in Taiwan, Cloud Gate is to present Dance Express (來雲門跳舞) at its base in New Taipei City on selected weekends before Nov. 21.
The interactive demonstration takes participants through a “dancing time warp and Cloud Gate’s daily training in ballet, modern dance [and] Tai Chi Dao Yin, as well as martial arts,” Cloud Gate’s Web site says.
Dancers are also to perform highlights from the group’s past works, including group founder Lin Hwai-min’s (林懷民) Moon Water (水月) and White Water (白水), as well as Cheng’s 13 Tongues (十三聲).
Tickets are available through the Tiki Poki service.
Before the end of the year, Cloud Gate plans to hold free community workshops in Keelung, Kaohsiung and Taichung, and Changhua, Yilan and Miaoli counties, as well as introductory events in schools in rural areas and the outlying islands of Kinmen, Matsu and Penghu, it said.
SHORT-TERM OUTLOOK: The Chinese military would most likely focus on rebuilding its organization and leadership in the next few years, experts said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) military purge has reduced the risks of a planned war against Taiwan, yet increased the danger of a conflict sparked by a miscalculation or accident, Taiwanese experts said yesterday. They made the comments at a seminar on the Fifth Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) 20th Central Committee held by the research group Secure Taiwan Associate Corp (STA) in Taipei. The wholesale sacking of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officers and managers of the aerospace and defense industry is sure to set back Xi’s timetable to prepare the PLA to launch an invasion of Taiwan
BATTLE-TESTED: Czech companies’ drones, software and navigation systems have been tested in the Ukraine war, while other countries’ are lab-tested, a Czech ex-official said Czech manufacturers are interested in setting up drone assembly lines in Taiwan, former Czech Chamber of Deputies president Marketa Pekarova Adamova told a forum in Taipei yesterday. Adamova made the comments at the inauguration of the Global UAV Academy, an organization dedicated to international cooperation in drone supply chains, technological certification and pilot training. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology said the Czech Republic is the largest importer of Taiwanese drones and uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) components. Adamova, who transitioned to the defense industry after retiring from politics, said the Roman adage “si vis pacem, para bellum” — “If you
Former China Central Television (CCTV) talk show host Cheng Wanjun (程萬軍) yesterday sought political asylum in Taiwan, a day after arriving at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on a connecting flight from Thailand. In a video posted on X, Cheng said he was appealing to Taiwan to grant him temporary asylum on humanitarian grounds while he sought permanent resettlement in a third country. Cheng said he previously served as editor-in-chief of the journal Law and Life and hosted legal affairs programs on state-run CCTV. He said he ran afoul of Chinese authorities in 2019 after a video surfaced showing him discussing rulers whose actions
Support for Democratic Progressive Party Legislator and Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) reached 52.6 percent, compared with 35.3 percent for Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), a poll released yesterday by the Strategy and Public Research Institute of Taiwan showed. The poll was held after the candidates’ first debate on Saturday. It showed support for Shen surpassing 50 percent for the first time, with the gap between the two widening to 17.3 percentage points. A breakdown of voting intentions by district found that Shen led Chiang in 11 of Taipei’s 12 districts. His strongest
RSS