- Date 2018.05.25
- Venue Cloud Gate Theater
BEHALF—Pichet Klunchun X Wu-Kang Chen
HORSE
Comments on the Finalist
BEHALF questions tradition by starting with “deconstructing.” Structure-wise, the work displays an intentional sense of uncertainty through choices that affect the formation of viewing results, attempting to unveil the crucial forces that create traditional appearances—that is, the arbitrary connection between “tradition” and “power.” The traditional approach to dancing used in Taiwan mainly focuses on the formal logic of movement or the presence of the body, which could be related to “constructing” the body’s subjectivity. In comparison, the unknown quality, uncertainty and incompleteness of BEHALF, along with the introspective quest unfolded through Chen Wu-Kang’s body and the decisive, distinct gestures by Pichet Klunchun, reflect Chen’s life to some extent as the work conveys his reflections on the current stage of his career stemming from the modern dance training system in Taiwan. It is also the beginning of his subsequent learning of and contemplation on traditional dances.
(Commentator: FAN Xiang-Jun)
Artwork Introduction
BEHALF—Pichet Klunchun X Wu-Kang Chen, an attempt to create a new form of international collaboration and performance, is co-created by dancer/choreographer Chen Wu-Kang from Taiwan and Pichet Klunchen from Thailand, revealing individual, collective and intercultural thinking and discussion on tradition. Respectively trained in ballet and Thai traditional dance, Chen and Klunchen have both dived into the world of contemporary dance. In 2016, HORSE invited Klunchen to Taiwan and collaborate with Chen to explore the topic conceived by both artists—the tradition of body. A two-year journey subsequently unfolded, characterized by cultural interactions, residencies, intensive physical dialogues, discussions on traditional issues and exchanges of their individual culture and personal stories, and eventually bloomed into their co-creation, BEHALF. In the performance, the two dancers express themselves through physical performance, examining tradition and addressing what it means to be contemporary through a dialectic process while incorporating the audience into the performance with the design of the creative form.
About the Artist
HORSE
The Chinese character, “驫” (pronounced as “biao”), refers to a herd of galloping horses. Founded by choreographers and performers including Chen Wu-Kang and Su Wei-Chia in 2004, the dance company is known and praised for its collective creation, precise physical performance and unique theatrical style. In 2008, nominated for the first time, their work, Velocity, was awarded the Performing Arts Award in the 6th Taishin Arts Award. In 2013, the dance company won the First Prize and Audience Award in Germany’s Kurt Jooss Preis with the work, 2 Men. In recent years, Chen and Su, the two key figures of the dance company, have developed their independent creative paths, seeking new forces of creativity as their contemporary dance careers have entered the fifteenth year in Taiwan. In addition to creating their own dances, HORSE also engages in multiple international collaborations, dance education programs and curatorial projects, among which are the improvisation platform Primal Chaos that combines dance and music and Back to the Moment Dancing Talking Bar, which features dialogues and discussions between creators and critics.
Production Team
Choreographers & Performers:Pichet Klunchun、Wu-Kang Chen
Dramaturge:Tang Fu-Kuen
Technical Director:Chia-Ming Liu
Lighting Design:Takayuki Fujimoto, Kinsei
Costume Consultant:Bing-Hao Lin, Keith Lin
Stage Design:Yin-Chiao Liao
Props and Stage Mechanism Design:Yin-Chiao Liao, Gubing
Musician:Shih-Yang, LeeYu-Wen Hung
Stage Manager:Jiou-Fang Peng
Technical Crew:
Ching-Hung Cheng, Sing-Hai Liu,
Zu-Kung Sie, Shu-Wei Wan, Ping-Shin Lin
Photography:Etang Chen
Viedo Record:
Kuan-Yu Chen , Shin-En Chen, Hsiang-Wen Juan
Graphic Design:Mistroom
Writer:Wei-Jyun Tao
General Director:Wei-Chia Su
Artistic Director: Wu-Kang Chen
Producer:Wen Huang
Coordinator:Ming-Hwa Yeh
Associate Producer:Spring Chen
Administration & Ticketing: Ching-Tzu Chien、 Ho-Ju Wu
Rehearsal Assistant:Yu-Ting Fang