Theater
Part of the Young Stars, New Vision 2009 series of dance and theater performances initiated by the National Theater and Concert Hall to showcase emerging talents, Theatre I (戲劇—狂想的風景) consists of two shows: Understanding Drama (戲劇概論) is director Chiang Jui-ming’s (姜睿明) study on his experience of being a transvestite, while Clear Life (黑白過) is a solo performance by Vera Chen (陳雪甄) about her search for happiness.
■ Experimental Theater, Taipei City
■ Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$300, available
through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
The Village (寶島一村) takes a nostalgic look at Taiwan’s veteran villages through the lives of three families, from 1949 to the present day. Television producer Wang Wei-chung (王偉忠) teams up with respected director Stan Lai (賴聲川) to produce a dramatic and humorous work about the communities that did much to shape modern Taiwan.
■ National Theater, Taipei City
■ Tonight and Tuesday 7:30pm, tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30pm
and 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$3,000, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Based on American playwright Neil Simon’s comedy of the same name, Green Ray Theatre’s (綠光劇團) Plaza Suite recounts the trials and tribulations of four couples. The cast includes Luo Bei-an (羅北安), Deng An-ning (鄧安寧) and pop star Eddie Peng (彭于晏).
■ Novel Hall (新舞臺), 3-1 Songshou Rd, Taipei City (台北市松壽路3-1號)
■ Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$600 to NT$2,000, available through ERA ticketing or online at www.ticket.com.tw
Fu-hsing Beijing Opera Troupe (復興國劇團) of the National Taiwan College of Performing Arts (國立台灣戲曲學院) presents Li Hsiang-chun (李香君), a kun opera (崑劇) love story that centers on the famed courtesan Li Hsiang-chun and scholar Hou Fang-yu (侯方域) of the Ming Dynasty.
■ Metropolitan Hall (城市舞台), 25, Bade Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市八德路三段25號)
■ Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$300 to NT$1,200, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Dancing Portrait of Taiwan (舞語台灣), Taipei Folk Dance Theater’s (台北民族舞團) newest production, features works by three male choreographers, including Kuo Jui-lin (郭瑞林) and Hu Min-shan (胡民山), who found inspiration in rural southern Taiwan.
■ Chiayi Performing Arts Center (嘉義縣表演藝術中心演藝廳), 265, Jianguo Rd Sec 2, Minsyong Township, Chiayi County (嘉義縣民雄鄉建國路二段265號)
■ Tomorrow at 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$350 to NT$800, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Classical music
Schumann’s Rhine Vista, 1850 (舒曼的萊茵風景1850), is a concert by the National Symphony Orchestra (國家交響樂團) that explores Schumann’s beliefs about the Rhine and its association with the growth of German civilization. The program includes Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto in G Minor and the Aeolian Caprices by Australian composer Richard Mills.
■ Today at 7:30pm
■ National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$1,500, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Roman Krasnovsky Organ Recital (克拉諾夫斯基管風琴名家獨奏會) will see the noted Ukrainian-born organist, who has graced the halls of Notre-Dame de Paris and King’s College Chapel, give the organ at the National Concert Hall a work out with a program that includes Bach’s Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C Major, BWV 564, Nun Komm, der Heiden Heiland , BWV 659 and Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565, as well as Johann Christian Heinrick Rinck’s Organ Concerto in F Major, Op. 55, Franck’s Prelude, Fugue and Variation, Op. 18 and his own Toccata Domenicale, Op.9.
■ Tomorrow at 7:30pm
■ National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$1,000, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Celebration of Chorus and Percussion (聲東擊西—英美合唱曲之夜) is a concert sponsored by the Taipei Symphony Orchestra (臺北市立交響樂團) featuring the Taipei Symphony Chorus (臺北市立交響樂團附設合唱團). The program includes Leonard Bernstein’s Choruses From “The Lark” and Folk Songs of the Four Seasons arranged by Vaughan Williams.
■ Tomorrow at 7:30pm
■ Zhongshan Hall (台北市中山堂), 98 Yanping S Rd, Taipei City (台北市延平南路98號)
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$800, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
East Meets West (楚漢相爭vs中西合璧) is a concert organized by the Taipei Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (台北愛樂青年管弦樂團) that will be performed in cooperation with the Chinese orchestra of the Taipei Hwa Kang Arts School (華岡國樂團). They will perform a program that includes Ma Shui-lung’s (馬水龍) Flute Concerto (梆笛協奏曲), an arrangement of the Yellow River Piano Concerto (黃河鋼琴協奏曲) and Ravel’s Bolero.
■ Monday at 7:30pm
■ National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$2,000, available through NTCH ticketing or online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Contemporary
Aphasia (阿飛西雅) plays tonight at the The Wall (這牆), sharing the bill with fellow post-rockers Selfkill. Later in the evening Back 2 the Future (B2TF, 回到未來) and Dance Rock Taipei present a mash-up of dubstep, rave, electro, big room and metal with DJs Deathface of Guns N’ Bombs, Mykal, fish.the and Two and Half Stars (兩星半). Tomorrow, revered indie-pop band 1976 appears in support of its latest release, Life or Live (不合時宜). On Sunday it’s pop-punk group The Fen-Fens (紛紛樂團), indie-pop band Radicalo and rockers H!Jack, and on Thursday nu-rock and funk group Coach (教練樂隊) takes the stage.
■ B1, 200, Roosevelt Rd Sec 4, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路四段200號B1).
Tel: (02) 2930-0162. On the Net:
www.thewall.com.tw
■ Music shows start at 8pm and 11pm tonight, 8pm tomorrow, 8pm Sunday and 8pm Thursday
■ Entrance fee is NT$400 tonight for the early show and NT$800 at the door for the DJs (NT$600 in advance), NT$300 on Sunday and NT$500 Thursday. Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.thewall.com.tw or tickets.books.com.tw
Jazzy/bluesy act Kukao (鼓號大樂隊) appears tonight at Witch House (女巫店), while tomorrow, it’s a trio of harmonica virtuosos, Sirius Sharp (天狼星口琴樂團). On Thursday the Bossarela Trio performs bossa nova.
■ 7, Ln 56, Xinsheng S Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市新生南路三段56巷7號).
Tel: (02) 2362-5494. On the Net: www.witchhouse.org
■ Performances start at 9:30pm. Restaurant/bar with queer/feminist bookstore and large collection of board games open 11am to midnight Sundays through Wednesdays; 11am to 1am Thursdays through Saturdays
■ Entry for music shows is NT$300
Veteran jazz combo JEG (這個爵士樂團) plays standards, Latin, funk, rock and fusion tonight at Riverside Cafe (河岸留言). Taiwan’s “little prince of R ‘n’ B,” Afalean Lu (盧學叡) takes the stage tomorrow, while on Sunday it’s fingerstyle instrumental guitar music from Woody Woody. On Monday the venue hosts its weekly open jam.
■ B1, 2, Ln 244, Roosevelt Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路三段244巷2號B1), next to Taipower Building (台電大樓). Tel: (02) 2368-7310. On the Net: www.riverside.com.tw
■ Shows start at 9:30pm tonight and 9pm tomorrow, Sunday and Monday. Open jam starts at 9pm. For a list of standard songs and ground rules, visit the venue’s Web site
■ Entrance fee is NT$400 tonight and tomorrow, NT$350 on Sunday and NT$150 on Monday
Tonight Riverside Live House (西門紅樓展演館) hosts Volare (羅平) a singer featured on the TV reality show Super Idol (超級偶像). The venue hosts a different singer from the program for the next five weeks. Tomorrow night T-shirt design company Pizza Cut Five throws a free party featuring music from actor and alt-rock star Ma Nien-hsien (馬念先), rapper Soft Lipa (蛋堡), Hakka hip-hop outfit Kou Chou Ching (拷秋勤) and Rust. On Sunday Blues Bash 6, which runs tonight and tomorrow [see story on Page 13], spins off with a show featuring Chicago-based Japanese guitar virtuoso Shun Kikuta, a former member of blues legend Koko Taylor’s touring band. He’ll be backed by local blues outfit Black Sheep (黑羊樂團). Male-female pop duo JS appears on Thursday [see story on Page 14].
■ 177 Xining S Rd, Taipei City (台北市西寧南路177號). Tel: (02) 2370-8805. On the Net: www.riverside.com.tw
■ Shows start at 8pm tonight, 7pm tomorrow, 8pm on Sunday, 8:30pm on Thursday
■ Entrance fee is NT$500 tonight, free tomorrow, NT$450 on Sunday and NT$400 on Thursday. Tickets can purchased online through
www.riverside.com.tw/livehouse or tickets.books.com.tw.
Indie-rock band Boyz and Girl (男孩們女孩) appear tonight at Underworld (地下社會) with Icon Girl Pistols. Metal punk band Total Disruption and Brain Corrosion get the audience riled up tomorrow night. On Wednesday it’s punks Inhuman Species (非人物種) and rockers H!Jack.
■ B1, 45 Shida Rd, Taipei City (台北市師大路45號B1). Tel: (02) 2369-0103. On the Net: www.upsaid.com/underworld
■ Music shows run from 9:30pm to 11:30pm on Fridays and Saturdays and 9pm to 11pm on Wednesdays. Underworld is open daily from
9pm, closed on Mondays. Happy hour on Tuesdays and Thursdays before midnight
■ Entrance is NT$300 tonight and tomorrow and includes one drink, NT$100 on Wednesday
Earl Hines II Jazztet performs tonight at Sappho de Base. Tomorrow is Crossing Borderlines, a fund-raiser for war-displaced Iraqi and Palestinian refugees. The event is being held by photographer Kloie Picot, who is raising funds by selling a pin-up calendar of female English teachers living in Taiwan [see story above]. On Tuesday it’s jazz pianist Andrew Page and his band Electric Experience, while on Wednesday the venue’s house band takes the stage. On Thursday the Sappho Jazz Trio leads an open jam.
■ B1, 1, Ln 102, Anhe Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市安和路一段102巷1號B1).
Tel: (02) 2700-5411. On the Net:
www.sappho102.biz
■ Music shows begin at 10:30pm on weekends, 10pm on weekdays. Sappho is closed on Sundays and Mondays
■ Entrance is free
Every Wednesday night at the Cosmopolitan Grill there’s an open mic hosted by keyboardist Andrew Page, with the music mainly covering blues and jazz. All are welcome to join in, and participants receive 20 percent off drinks.
■ 1F, 218 Changchun Rd, Taipei City (台北市長春路218號1樓). Tel: (02) 2508-0304. On the Net: www.cosmo.com.tw
■ 8:30pm to 11pm on Wednesday
■ No entrance fee
EZ5 Live House hosts Mando-pop singers backed by a live band every night. Highlights for the coming week include beloved female singer Tiger Huang (黃小琥), who performs two sets every Monday, and male crooner Huang Chung-yuan (黃中原), who performs every Friday.
■ 211, Anhe Rd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北 市安和路二段211號). Tel: (02) 2738-3995. On the Net: visit www.ez5.com.tw
■ Music shows run from 9:45pm to 12:30am
■ Entrance fee (includes two drinks) ranges from NT$600 to NT$850, depending on the performer
The Mercury (水星酒館), a new club that opened a few months ago in Kaohsiung, launches a full live-music program this month featuring indie bands. Tonight Orange Doll (橘娃娃) performs melodic guitar pop with a hint of punk. Tomorrow is Neilfest IV, a tribute concert devoted to Neil Young featuring expat musicians T-Bone and Brasco, Seamus Manly and Dim Bulb.
■ 46 Liwen Rd, Zuoying Dist, Kaohsiung City (高雄市左營區立文路46號). Tel: (07) 550-8617. On the Net: mercurybar.blogspot.com
■ Shows start at 9:30pm
■ Entrance is NT$100 tonight,free tomorrow
Tonight 89k in Taichung hosts Australian electro-band Godswounds, which is currently on an extended tour of Taiwan.
■ 21 Daguan Rd, Nantun Dist, Taichung City (台中市南屯區大觀路21號)
■ Shows start at 10pm
■ Entrance is NT$300
Roxy Roots, a bar and restaurant dedicated to reggae and blues fans, hosts the first night of Blues Bash 6 [see story on Page 13]. Appearing tomorrow is expat reggae group The Blue Truckers.
■ 90 Songren Rd, Taipei City (台北市松仁路90號), Tel: (02) 2725-3932. On the Net: www.roxy.com.tw
■ Show starts at 9:30pm tomorrow
■ Entrance is NT$500 tonight, includes one drink; tomorrow is free
When nature calls, Masana Izawa has followed the same routine for more than 50 years: heading out to the woods in Japan, dropping his pants and doing as bears do. “We survive by eating other living things. But you can give faeces back to nature so that organisms in the soil can decompose them,” the 74-year-old said. “This means you are giving life back. What could be a more sublime act?” “Fundo-shi” (“poop-soil master”) Izawa is something of a celebrity in Japan, publishing books, delivering lectures and appearing in a documentary. People flock to his “Poopland” and centuries-old wooden “Fundo-an” (“poop-soil house”) in
Jan 13 to Jan 19 Yang Jen-huang (楊仁煌) recalls being slapped by his father when he asked about their Sakizaya heritage, telling him to never mention it otherwise they’ll be killed. “Only then did I start learning about the Karewan Incident,” he tells Mayaw Kilang in “The social culture and ethnic identification of the Sakizaya” (撒奇萊雅族的社會文化與民族認定). “Many of our elders are reluctant to call themselves Sakizaya, and are accustomed to living in Amis (Pangcah) society. Therefore, it’s up to the younger generation to push for official recognition, because there’s still a taboo with the older people.” Although the Sakizaya became Taiwan’s 13th
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China’s military launched a record number of warplane incursions around Taiwan last year as it builds its ability to launch full-scale invasion, something a former chief of Taiwan’s armed forces said Beijing could be capable of within a decade. Analysts said China’s relentless harassment had taken a toll on Taiwan’s resources, but had failed to convince them to capitulate, largely because the threat of invasion was still an empty one, for now. Xi Jinping’s (習近平) determination to annex Taiwan under what the president terms “reunification” is no secret. He has publicly and stridently promised to bring it under Communist party (CCP) control,
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