To promote the unique performing arts of hand-maneuvered glove puppetry on the global stage, two Taiwanese puppet troupes will each bring their dexterous crafts to overseas audiences in Canada this November.
The two renowned groups — Taiyuan Puppet Theatre (台原偶戲團) and Chin Fei Feng Marionette Theatre Troupe (錦飛鳳儡傀戲劇團) — have been invited as the featured guests of the 2014 Ouxi Taiwanese Puppetry Festival organized by the University of British Columbia's Museum of Anthropology.
The five-day festival will take place from Nov. 4 through 9 at UBC's Vancouver campus as part of the university's ongoing collaboration with the Ministry of Culture under the"Spotlight Taiwan” program.
The two troupes will be stationed at the Michael Ames Theatre, where they will be offering puppetry workshops and demonstrations from Nov. 4 through 9. Taiyuan will also formally stage a romantic hero story titled "A Sea of Puppets” while Chin Fei Feng introduces the wide array of puppet characters they have on hand on Nov. 8.
The Ouxi festival will also be accompanied by school shows, a community dinner, puppet painting, and collaboration with local artists. For example, Nov. 7 will provide an opportunity for the two troupes to meet with Canada's First Nations aborigines, and Nov. 9 will feature an experiment performance put together by Taiwanese puppeteers and indigenous Haida artists.
Vancouver will be the third stop on Taiyuan's Pacific Northwest tour. With assistance from the Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles, Taiyuan puppeteers recently concluded their performances at the University of California in Los Angeles on Oct. 28, and at the Carlson Theater in Bellevue, Seattle on Nov. 1.
‘Ouxi Taiwanese Puppetry Festival'
Date: Nov. 4 ~ 9, 2014
Venue: UBC Museum of Anthropology
Address: 6393 N.W. Marine Drive Vancouver, B.C. V6T 1Z2
Website: moa.ubc.ca/experience/program_details.php?id=1427