Taiwanese contemporary dancer Chou Shu-yi (周書毅) and theater actor Cheng Chih-chung (鄭志忠) co-created a dance performance "The Center (阿忠與我)," which will be presented at an annual party of the International Society for the Performing Arts (ISPA) on Jan. 12., to strive for international performance opportunities.
Commissioned by the National Theater and Concert Hall and the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts, The Center focuses on social issues through the dialogue among wheelchairs, crutches, and other assistive devices, as well as bodies.
According to The Center's introduction, when Chou Shu-yi and Cheng Chih-chung meet, a conversation about equality and inequality unfolds in language of the body. Through their physical and life differences, the two interrogate the meaning of "born equal" in the context of family, society and the state. The creative process revolves around the human body, with concerns about world affairs and social movements and confronts the oppression of humanity manifested in the form of physical constraints.
In addition to the two aforementioned creators and performers, other production crew members include composer Wang Yu-jun (王榆鈞), Hong Kong theater designer Lee Chi-wai (李智偉), theater designer Lin Ching-ju (林璟如), and producer Neo Wu (吳季娟).
ISPA's "Pitch New Works" program last year was held online due to the pandemic. However, this year's event will go hybrid. The physical event will be kicked off at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in the United States from 10:00 am to 12:00 EST. Meanwhile, nine groups' proposals will be broadcast via an online platform from 6:00 to 8:00 am EST.
The Center will be introduced to program planners of major performing arts institutions around the world, together with the works by eight teams from countries such as the United States, Canada, Britain, New Zealand, Australia.
The International Society for the Performing Arts (ISPA) is a global association of more than 500 arts management leaders from 56 regions, who come together with the shared goal of strengthening and developing the arts internationally.