Theater
Riverside Spring Dream (河邊春夢), a Taiwanese operatic production by the Chen Meiyun Opera Troupe (陳美雲歌劇團), tells of two parallel romances. One takes place in 1940s Dadaocheng, the other happens in Monga during the Qing Dynasty.
■ Dadaocheng Theater (大稻埕戲苑), 9F, 21, Dihua St Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市迪化街一段21號9樓)
■ Tomorrow and Saturday at 7pm, Sunday at 2pm
■ Tickets are NT$500 to NT$2,000, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Established in 1991 in Dharamsala, India, by former political prisoners, The Gu-Chu-Sum (9-10-3) Movement of Tibet debuts in Taiwan with a theatrical performance based on the real-life stories of the troupe’s members. The production is part of the ongoing Free Tibet Festival (2012圖博文化節). For more information, visit freetibet2012.blogspot.com.
■ Guling Street Avant-Garde Theatre (牯嶺街小劇場), 2, Ln 5, Guling St, Taipei City (台北市牯嶺街5巷2號)
■ Saturday at 7:30pm and Sunday at 2pm and 4:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$300, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Tuesdays With Morrie, Godot Theatre Company’s (果陀劇場) newest production, is the stage adaptation of US author Mitch Albom’s 1997 memoir. In the best-selling work, Albom recounts the lessons he learned from visiting his former professor, Morrie Schwartz, who was dying of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a terminal disease caused by the degeneration of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. The cast is led by actor Chin Shih-chieh (金士傑) in the role of Morrie.
■ Metropolitan Hall (台北市社教館城市舞台), 25, Bade Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市八德路三段25號)
■ Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm, Saturday at 2:30pm and 7:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$3,000, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Inspired by Jean Genet’s Les Bonnes (1947) and Eugene Ionesco’s La Lecon (1951), La Lecon des Bonnes (雙婢怨), by the Snow White Entertaining Troupe (白雪綜藝劇團), is a dark comedy that centers on two maids and two starlets. The cast includes theater veteran Hu Hsiu-wei (胡修維), whose drag persona is Hu BB (胡BB), and female entertainers Hu Ying-chen (胡盈禎) and Jane Lee (李佩甄).
■ Wei Wu Ying Center for the Arts (衛武營藝術文化中心), 449-1 Nanjing Rd, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市南京路449-1號)
■ Tomorrow at 7:30pm, Saturday at 2:30pm and 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$500, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
YogeeTi (有機體) is the product of a collaboration between French choreographer Mourad Merzouki of the Kafig Company and Taiwanese fashion designer Johan Ku (古又文). To create the piece, Merzouki picked five Taiwanese dancers to work with five French hip-hop artists. His choreography envisions the dancers moving like needles pulling invisible threads as they weave the show together.
■ Kaohsiung Cultural Center’s Chihshan Hall (高雄市文化中心至善廳), 67 Wufu 1st Rd, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市五福一路67號)
■ Saturday at 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$900 to NT$2,000, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Classical music
2012 Taipei Bach Festival — St Matthew Passion (2012台北巴赫音樂節 — 聖馬太受難曲) is a chance to hear Bach’s great choral work with the Academy of Taiwan Strings (台灣弦樂團) performing under Helmuth Rilling, supported by the Taipei Philharmonic Chorus (台北愛樂合唱團) under chorus master Wu Shang-lun (吳尚倫) and featuring soprano Grace Lin (林慈音), alto Weng Jo-pei (翁若珮), tenor Teng Chi-long (鄧吉龍), baritone Klaus Hager and bass Tobias Berndt.
■ Today at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 7:30pm and Saturday at 2pm (Taipei Municipal University of Education), Monday at 7:30pm and Tuesday at 7:30pm (National Concert Hall)
■ Taipei Municipal University of Education Auditorium (臺北市立教育大學), 1 Aiguo W Rd, Taipei City (台北市愛國西路1號) and National Concert Hall, Taipei City
■ Tickets are NT$400 for the Taipei Municipal University of Education performances and NT$400 to NT$2,500 for the National Concert Hall performances, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
NSO 25 — Centennial Russia (NSO節慶系列 — 百年‧風雲) is a concert by the National Symphony Orchestra (國家交響樂團) that is being put on in association with the Taiwan International Festival of Arts (台灣國際藝術節) and the Kaohsiung Spring Arts Festival (高雄春天藝術節). The program includes Rimsky-Korsakov’s Russian Easter Overture, Op. 36, Glazunov’s Violin Concerto in A Minor, Op. 82, and Shostakovitch’s Symphony No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 65. The orchestra will perform under the baton of guest conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky and will feature violin soloist Sasha Rozhdestvensky.
■ Saturday at 7:30pm (Taipei) and Sunday at 7:30pm (Kaohsiung)
■ National Concert Hall, Taipei City and Kaohsiung Cultural Center’s Chihteh Hall (高雄市立文化中心至德堂), 67 Wufu 1st Rd, Greater Kaohsiung, (高雄市五福一路67號)
■ Tickets are NT$400 to NT$2,500 in Taipei and NT$500 to NT$2,500 in Kaohsiung, available through NTCH ticketing and online at www.artsticket.com.tw
Contemporary
Swedish pop duo Roxette takes to the stage tomorrow at Taipei’s ATT Show Box. The Swedes, which were behind a number of major pop hits during the late 1980s and early 1990s, have returned to touring and recording in recent years and last appeared in Taipei in 1995.
■ 7F, 12 Songshou Rd, Taipei City (台北市松壽路12號7樓)
■ Show starts at 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$2,000 and NT$3,500, available through Rose Records outlets (玫瑰大眾唱片), which are listed online at www.g-music.iticket.com.tw (in Chinese only)
Expat pianist and composer Andrew Page has begun a seven-week concert series, titled Southern Light, which started on Wednesday last week at Tainan’s Wan Sha Concert Hall (涴莎永華館). The series features the multitalented American musician performing with guests in genres ranging from classical and jazz to rock and blues. The next concert is titled Latin Guitar, with Page performing with guitarist Roberto Zayas.
■ 75 Yonghua 1st St, Greater Tainan (台南市永華一街75號)
■ Show starts at 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$400, available at the door or at 7-Eleven iBon kiosks nationwide.
Legacy Taipei, located in a former warehouse at Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914), hosts top Taiwanese pop performers and international acts. Tonight is the venue’s semi-regular showcase of up-and-coming indie bands. The lineup includes HiJack, electronica group Miss Banana (香蕉小姐), electro-rock band Nintendo Generation Blues (任天堂世代憂鬱) and Hong Kong pop-rock outfit Supper Moment. Tomorrow night’s show with alt-rock veterans Backquarter (四分衛) is sold out. On Saturday, the venue hosts a trio of veteran female pop and jazz singers: Emily Guan (官靈芝), Hsiu-ching (秀璟) and Fan Yi-wen (范怡文). On Wednesday, indie rock group Human Beings (人) shares the bill with punk groups Inhuman Species (非人物種) and The Same Day (平凡生活). NOTE: Last week’s shows were incorrectly listed for this venue. the Taipei Times regrets the error.
■ Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914), Center Five Hall (中五館), 1, Bade Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市八德路一段1號)
■ Shows start at 8pm
■ NT$200 tonight, sold out tomorrow, NT$1,600 and NT$1,200, depending on seating area, on Saturday, and NT$400 on Wednesday (NT$300 in advance). Tickets for the venue’s concerts can be purchased at ERA ticketing outlets, online through www.ticket.com.tw, www.legacy.com.tw and at 7-Eleven ibon kiosks
Tonight The Wall (這牆), Taipei’s most prominent venue for indie rock artists, hosts Chinese group Omnipotent Youth Society (萬能青年旅店). The show, which features The White Eyes (白目樂隊) as the opening act, is already sold out. Tomorrow, Green!Eyes shares the bill with Japanese alt-rock group The Novembers. On Sunday, American Christian metal band Underoath takes to 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
■ Shows start at 8pm
■ Sold out tonight, NT$1,100 tomorrow (NT$900 in advance) and NT$1,500 Sunday (NT$1,200 in advance). Tickets for all shows can be purchased online through www.thewall.com.tw and tickets.books.com.tw
Tonight Witch House (女巫店), an intimate coffeehouse-style venue in the National Taiwan University area, hosts electronica band Sleeping Brain (眠腦) and folk rocker Finn. Pop singer/songwriter Iris Lin (林綾) takes to the stage tomorrow, and on Saturday, it’s solo folk rocker Early and indie pop duo U.TA (屋塔).
■ 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
■ Shows 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
■ Entrance for music shows is NT$300
DJ/musician Floaty leads his garage rock band tomorrow at Underworld (地下社會), a small basement club in Taipei. Also performing is the beloved Taiwanese folk and reggae rock band Hang in The Air (盪在空中). On Saturday, punk group Destroyers (擊沈女孩) shares the bill with expat indie rock band Roxymoron. On Wednesday, it’s up-and-coming bands Escape and Blue Blooded Bruder (藍血人).
■ 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
■ Shows run from 9pm to 11pm on Friday and Saturday. Underworld is open daily from 9pm, closed on Mondays. Happy hour on Tuesdays and Thursdays before midnight
■ Entrance is NT$300 tomorrow and Saturday (includes one drink). Entrance for Wednesday shows is NT$100
Mando-pop female crooner Ren, real name Hsia Yu-tung (夏宇童), and Tuan Yuan-yu (童圓喻) perform tonight at Riverside Cafe (河岸留言). Tomorrow it’s veteran jazz combo JEG (這個爵士樂團). Up-and-coming Mando-pop singer Chen Man-ching (陳曼青) takes to the stage on Saturday. On Sunday, the venue hosts indie singer-songwriter Zoe Huang (黃玠瑋) and female acoustic pop duo Pia.
■ 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 9pm, except tomorrow’s, which starts at 9:30pm
■ NT$350 tonight and Sunday, NT$400 tomorrow and Saturday. Tickets can be purchased online through www.riverside.com.tw and tickets.books.com.tw
Tonight Riverside Live House (河岸留言西門紅樓展演館) hosts jazzy folk rockers Baba Band (爸爸辦桌). Tomorrow it’s pop rock group Great Adventure (大冒險樂團), pop singer Tong-en (同恩) and R ‘n’ B rockers VF (心室細動). Indie-pop singer-songwriter Peggy Hsu (許哲珮) takes to the stage on Saturday.
■ 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 8:30pm, except tomorrow’s, which starts at 8pm
■ NT$400 tonight and tomorrow, NT$600 on Saturday. Tickets can be purchased online through www.riverside.com.tw/livehouse or tickets.books.com.tw
The TAV Cafe (藝術村餐坊), a bar and cafe located at the Taipei Artist Village (台北國際藝術村), hosts expat rock/folk/blues group Fugue State on Saturday.
■ 7 Beiping E Rd, Taipei City (台北市北平東路7號), tel: (02) 3393-7377 X207
■ Show starts at 9pm
■ Entrance is NT$350, which includes one drink
Tonight indie rock club Revolver hosts noise-loving garage rock band Forests, expat indie rockers Roxymoron and The Others. Tomorrow the venue hosts DJs Infinite Freefall, c-Type, Ric Lai and El Diente. On Saturday, it’s a pair of expat bands: hip-hop group Dr Reniculous Lipz and the Skallyunz (白悟空) and reggae/ska outfit High Tide.
■ 1-2, Roosevelt Rd Sec 1, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路一段1-2號), tel: (02) 3393-1678
■ Shows start at 10pm
■ Entrance is NT$200 tonight, NT$250 tomorrow, NT$300 on Saturday
Acclaimed Aboriginal singer Samingad (紀曉君) performs every Thursday at EZ5 Live House, which hosts Mando-pop singers backed by a live band every night. Highlights for the week ahead include male crooner Shin Lung (辛龍), who performs every Saturday, and veteran performer Ann Lang (郎祖筠) on Wednesdays.
■ 211, Anhe Rd Sec 2, Taipei City (台北市安和路二段211號), tel: (02) 2738-3995. On the Net: www.ez5.com.tw
■ Shows run from 9:45pm to 12:30am
■ Entrance fee (includes two drinks) ranges from NT$600 to NT$850, depending on the performer
Denise Juan (阮丹青), a former pop singer turned piano teacher, television presenter and traveler, performs tonight at Sappho de Base, a late-night lounge bar. Emo Jazz Trio takes to the stage later in the evening. Taipei Rocket 88 Blues Band performs tomorrow, and Wild Cactus Jazz is on Saturday.
■ 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
■ Tonight’s show with Denise Juan runs from 8pm to 9:45pm, All other shows start at 10pm. The venue is closed on Sundays and Mondays
■ Entrance is NT$450 tonight, NT$200 tomorrow and Saturday, free all other nights
The Wall (這牆) programs regular shows at Kaohsiung’s Pier 2 Arts Center (高雄駁二藝術特區). On Saturday and Sunday, the venue hosts the Megaport Festival, which features around 50 bands from Taiwan and Japan.
■ 1 Dayong Rd, Yancheng Dist, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市鹽埕區大勇路1號). On the Net: pier-2.khcc.gov.tw, www.thewall.com.tw
■ Show starts at 7:30pm on Saturday and Sunday
■ NT$1,600 for two-day pass, NT$1000 for single-day pass (NT$1,400 and NT$800 in advance). Tickets for all shows can be purchased online through www.thewall.com.tw and tickets.books.com.tw, and at 7-Eleven ibon kiosks
Jan. 6 to Jan. 12 Perhaps hoping to gain the blessing of the stone-age hunter-gatherers that dwelt along the east coast 30,000 years ago, visitors to the Baxian Caves (八仙洞) during the 1970s would grab a handful of soil to bring home. In January 1969, the nation was captivated by the excavation of pre-ceramic artifacts and other traces of human habitation in several caves atop a sea cliff in Taitung County. The majority of the unearthed objects were single-faced, unpolished flake tools fashioned from natural pebbles collected by the shore. While archaeologists had found plenty of neolithic (7,000 BC to 1,700
Famed Chinese demographer Yi Fuxian (易富賢) recently wrote for The Diplomat on the effects of a cross-strait war on demography. He contended that one way to deter the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is by putting the demographic issue front and center — last year total births in the PRC, he said, receded to levels not seen since 1762. Yi observes that Taiwan’s current fertility rate is already lower than Ukraine’s — a nation at war that is refusing to send its young into battle — and that its “demographic crisis suggests that Taiwan’s technological importance will rapidly decline, and
When the weather is too cold to enjoy the white beaches and blue waters of Pingtung County’s Kenting (墾丁), it’s the perfect time to head up into the hills and enjoy a different part of the national park. In the highlands above the bustling beach resorts, a simple set of trails treats visitors to lush forest, rocky peaks, billowing grassland and a spectacular bird’s-eye view of the coast. The rolling hills beyond Hengchun Township (恆春) in Pingtung County offer a two-hour through-hike of sweeping views from the mighty peak of Dajianshih Mountain (大尖石山) to Eluanbi Lighthouse (鵝鑾鼻燈塔) on the coast, or
Her greatest fear, dormant for decades, came rushing back in an instant: had she adopted and raised a kidnapped child? Peg Reif’s daughter, adopted from South Korea in the 1980s, had sent her a link to a documentary detailing how the system that made their family was rife with fraud: documents falsified, babies switched, children snatched off the street and sent abroad. Reif wept. She was among more than 120 who contacted The Associated Press this fall, after a series of stories and a documentary made with Frontline exposed how Korea created a baby pipeline, designed to ship children abroad as quickly as
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