Yunlin stages international puppet arts festival

2015/10/07

An international puppet arts festival is underway in Yunlin, highlighting local government efforts aimed at building the western Taiwan county into a global hub for the traditional art form.

Organized by Yunlin County Government’s Cultural Affairs Department, the 10-day event features 104 shows by masters Chung Jen-pi, Huang Chun-hsiung and Liao Wen-ho, as well as troupes from Japan, the Netherlands, Serbia, Singapore, Thailand and mainland China.

County Magistrate Lee Chin-yung said Yunlin is the spiritual home of glove puppetry in Taiwan, a fact reflected by the festival’s eclectic lineup of activities. “We are restaging classical masterpieces geared to audiences of all ages, helping foster greater public interest in a rich aspect of the nation’s cultural makeup.”

Echoing Lee’s remarks, CAD Director Lin Yuan-chuan said the event also serves as a platform for international cultural exchanges. “By featuring different genres like marionette and shadow puppetry, we hope to create an opportunity for borderless cooperation and further fan the flames of creativity.”

Highlights of upcoming performances include a chapter adaptation of the time-honored Chinese novel “Journey to the West” by Taipei City-based Hsin Hsing Ku Puppet Show Troupe. The event is taking place Oct. 10 at Huwei Township’s Yunlin Hand Puppet Museum.

The show by Hsin Hsing Ku will be overseen by Chung, the fifth-generation head and current director of the troupe. He has devoted himself to glove puppetry for over six decades and was honored with a Heritage Award by the Ministry of Education in 1991 and Special Cultural Contribution Award by YCG in 2003.

Equally impressive is Liao Wen-ho Puppet Show Troupe’s act recounting the pursuit of a powerful mystical sword. Held at Zuhu Zantain Temple Oct. 10, the group is certain to deliver a trademark performance filled with eye-catching martial arts moves and sidesplitting laughs.

Liao is renowned for his 20-plus tones of voice. He received the Global Chinese Culture and Art Heritage Award from Junior Chamber International Taiwan in 1999 and prizes from various local theater competitions.

Another outstanding act is a marionette musical comedy “Travel around the World” by Puppet Theater Pepino of Serbia. A total of 36 puppets and assortment of music from 14 countries and territories are employed in the show, which has been proved popular in 210 cities worldwide.

Established in 1999 by the CAD, the annual festival wraps up Oct. 11 this year and is expected to attract a healthy number of visitors from home and abroad.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=237464&ctNode=2194&mp=9)