The first Taiwanese winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind, took to the stage on Thursday at the Paris Cultural Olympiad along with members of her group Haus of Wind to showcase Taiwanese culture.
“Let us put this out there: I know it says Chinese Taipei, but in my world, it says Taiwan,” the drag queen said during the show at the Taiwan Pavilion.
“It means a lot to me to be able to represent Taiwan in a foreign country,” she added.
Photo: CNA
In the show, titled “Formosa Follies,” she captivated the audience by dressing as Mazu and the butterfly queen, and performed a selection of timeless Taiwanese songs.
“She is inspiring — she is the ‘Banana Queen,’” said a French Nymphia fan named Antoine.
He had come with a group of friends specifically to see Haus of Wind perform, Antoine said.
Discussing their perception of Taiwanese society, he said he believes Taiwan must be an open-minded society, as it allows Nymphia to shine.
“It is wonderful that she can share messages of openness, inclusivity and excellence with the world,” he said.
Meanwhile, Antoine’s friend Jerome said that although he had only learned about Taiwan’s vibrant drag community through RuPaul’s Drag Race and Nymphia, he knew that Taiwan was the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage.
At the end of the performance, a video montage featuring fan contributions from around the world since mid-June was displayed on the screen, featuring the rainbow flag and a map of Taiwan.
A group of Taiwanese audience members based in France said they were very inspired by the performance, especially given it was the first time that two of them had watched a drag show.
“I was fully absorbed tonight. I appreciate that she presented Taiwanese culture in such a brave way,” an audience member nicknamed Hsia-yu (小魚) said. “I enjoyed her selection of music, and sang and danced along.”
“It was really touching. With the backdrop showcasing the beautiful scenery of Taiwan, the show allowed me to relive the feeling of my home country. I am really glad to see all this in Paris,” said Peng Hsuan (芃萱), another audience member.
An alleged US government plan to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to form a joint venture with Intel to boost US chipmaking would place the Taiwanese foundry giant in a more disadvantageous position than proposed tariffs on imported chips, a semiconductor expert said yesterday. If TSMC forms a joint venture with its US rival, it faces the risk of technology outflow, said Liu Pei-chen (劉佩真), a researcher at the Taiwan Industry Economics Database of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. A report by international financial services firm Baird said that Asia semiconductor supply chain talks suggest that the US government would
ANNUAL LIGHT SHOW: The lanterns are exhibited near Taoyuan’s high-speed rail station and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the airport MRT line More than 400 lanterns are to be on display at the annual Taiwan Lantern Festival, which officially starts in Taoyuan today. The city is hosting the festival for the second time — the first time was in 2016. The Tourism Administration held a rehearsal of the festival last night. Chunghwa Telecom donated the main lantern of the festival to the Taoyuan City Government. The lanterns are exhibited in two main areas: near the high-speed rail (HSR) station in Taoyuan, which is at the A18 station of the Taoyuan Airport MRT, and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the MRT
Starlux Airlines on Tuesday announced it is to launch new direct flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Ontario, California, on June 2. The carrier said it plans to deploy the new-generation Airbus A350 on the Taipei-Ontario route. The Airbus A350 features a total of 306 seats, including four in first class, 26 in business class, 36 in premium economy and 240 in economy. According to Starlux’s initial schedule, four flights would run between Taoyuan and Ontario per week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Flights are to depart from Taoyuan at 8:05pm and arrive in California at 5:05pm (local time), while return flights
Nearly 800 Indian tourists are to arrive this week on an incentive tour organized by Indian company Asian Painted Ltd, making it the largest tour group from the South Asian nation to visit since the COVID-19 pandemic. The travelers are scheduled to arrive in six batches from Sunday to Feb. 25 for five-day tours, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The tour would take the travelers, most of whom are visiting Taiwan for the first time, to several tourist sites in Taipei and Yilan County, including tea houses in Taipei’s Maokong (貓空), Dadaocheng (大稻埕) and Ximending (西門町) areas. They would also visit