The National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts, also known as Weiwuying, will present several free performances over the weekend as part of its annual “Circus Platform” event.
Under the theme of “Extraordinary World, Extraordinary Games,” the performances will take place from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon at the Banyan Plaza, an open space that shares the same roof with the arts center’s four venues, the arts center said in a statement Wednesday.
The Banyan Plaza has been transformed into a circus tent-like space for the performances, with interactive installations scattered around over two weekends, according to the arts center.
On Friday and Saturday evenings, Phare, the Cambodia Circus will perform “Influence,” a one-hour show that uses drama, circus acts, and puppetry to explore the social issue of “survival of the fittest and struggle for power,” the arts center said.
The first performance of “Live in the Moment” by Taiwanese circus performer Kuo Chieng-hung (???) and musical group The Wanderoots, and “Toggle Switch” by acrobats from the Radiant Dance Studio, will also be held on Friday evening.
Saturday will feature two performances of each show, with one on Sunday, according to the arts center.
On Saturday and Sunday afternoons, the Zhen Yun Lin Ge Puppet Theater and Circus P.S. will give one performance of “Get Well Soon” while the New Image Theater Group will perform “Aroma of Rice Ears Telling a Rich Harvest,” according to the arts center.
In addition, both afternoons will host two performances of Taichung-based Ars Association’s “Ayla – The First Visit,” which features a four-meter tall puppet of an elementary school student from the future, according to the arts center.
A market fair will be held on Saturdays and Sundays from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. until Dec. 25, the arts center added.
Meanwhile, the circus platform will conclude with two ticketed performances of “Humanoptère,” a show featuring seven jugglers from France’s La Main de l’Homme from Dec. 17-18, according to the arts center.
The French group will give another two performances at Taipei Performing Arts Center from Dec. 23-24.
This year’s circus platform began on Monday with a four-day masterclass on “magic,” which is organized by Centre national des arts du cirque in France, Weiwuying said.
The masterclass was led by magician Arthur Chavaudret, with anthropologist Valentine Losseau giving “theoretical lessons on new magic,” it added.
Information about the shows and interactive installations, including a “Bubble Maze,” can be found on Weiwuying’s website.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel