Drama troupe to share Taiwan opera in Africa

2014-08-06

A seven-member Ming Hwa Yuan Arts and Cultural Group departed Aug. 5 for Lesotho and Swaziland to share its knowledge of Taiwan opera with about 40 orphans in the two southern African nations.

“The tour is part of an initiative launched eight years ago by Ming Hwa Yuan to heighten awareness of this magnificent art form among youth worldwide,” company President Chen Sheng-fu said at a news conference the day before. “It also marks the first time the troupe’s third-generation artists are taking up the baton to continue the mission.”

Artists including Li Ling-chen and Chen’s daughter Chen Chao-hsien are on the 15-day tour to teach the first to third-graders how to sing and act the drama “Cave of the Silken Web.” The youngsters are due to perform in Taipei at year-end to demonstrate their new-found prowess, Chen added.

This is the third time Ming Hwa Yuan has gone to the continent since first visiting in 1999. During their 2006 visit to an orphanage in Malawi, Chen’s opera star wife Sun Tsui-feng was so impressed by the children’s singing and athletic talents that she started to instruct them in Taiwan opera.

The initiative has taken in 12 countries across Africa, Asia and Europe. To date, the 85-year-old opera group has traveled to 52 destinations in 16 countries and territories to share the beauty of the Taiwan art form, Chen said.

The troupe also performed in areas hit hard by the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan and touched the hearts of many, he added.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=220319&CtNode=413)