Taipei Cultural Center in New York, in collaboration with Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan and Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, presents "Behind-the-Scenes: Creation of 13 Tongues" video series for the audience around the world from May 13 to May 23.
Created by Cloud Gate's Artistic Director Cheng Tsung-lung (鄭宗龍) and commissioned by National Theater & Concert Hall (Taipei), 13 Tongues is based on stories from Cheng’s mother about a street artist in the 1960s named Thirteen Tongues.
This legendary story-teller was said to portray multiple roles of all walks of life in Bangka (艋舺), the oldest district in Taipei City, rich with temples, religious rites, and festive parades. In this piece, Cheng transforms his childhood memory of the Taoist rites and bustling street life of Bangka into a fantasy world.
The creative team and dancers of 13 Tongues traveled from Taipei to Pingtung, visited temples, villages and old masters. In the "Behind-the-Scenes: Creation of 13 Tongues" episodes, choreographer Cheng Tsung-lung(鄭宗龍), music artist Lim Giong(林強), art design He Jia-sing(何佳興), lighting design Shen Po-hung(沈柏宏), projection design Ethan Wang(王奕盛), and costume design Lin Bing-hao(林秉豪) talked about their inspirations and artistic concepts.
Director of Taipei Cultural Center in New York Chang Hui-Chun (張惠君) pointed out that "Behind-the-Scenes: Creation of 13 Tongues" decrypts the making of a contemporary dance, and introduces the essence of Taiwanese arts and cultures in our daily life.
She added that it is meaningful as the episodes not only introduces Cloud Gate to the world stage it also shares the rich and diverse cultures of Taiwan with the world.
Episodes 2, 3, and 4 : Behind-The-Scenes | Creation Of 13 Tongues
Date : May 13 – 23 , 2021
Websites : https://www.youtube.com/user/AuditoriumTheatre and https://www.facebook.com/auditoriumtheatre/