Experimental Theatre: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei and Tokyo
Schedule:
August 17th to 23rd, 2008 – Workshop in Hong Kong
October 25th to November 24th, 2008 – touring four cities: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei and Tokyo
Project organized by:
Hiroshi Ohashi (Tokyo), Tong Sze Hong (Hong Kong), Wang Mo Lin (Taipei) and Zhao Chuan (Shanghai)
Background
East Asian theatre artists have collaborated loosely on many occasions; they have learned from one another in workshops, productions or just from facing the same social and economical changes in varying globalized contexts. Since 2006, four theatre promoters and directors Wang Moiln (Taipei), Hiroshi Ohashi (Tokyo), Tong Sze Hong (Hong Kong) and Zhao Chuan (Shanghai), from different generations, cities and nationalities, communicated over a common goal. They sought to create a straightforward program which would allow them to get together, run workshops and make collaborative works. Their proposal turned into a reality and has been in action since early 2008.
Workshop in Hong Kong
Between August 17th and 23rd Hiroshi Ohashi, Tong Sze Hong, Wang Mo Lin and Zhao Chuan will gather with Clash Theater group in Hong Kong. They will spend a week in workshop doing research and exchanging ideas on how best to make collaborative theatre works under four directors. They will work with Clash to study improvisation technique in performance facilitate by Tong Sze Hong.
Touring in four cities: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipei and Tokyo
Based on the results from the Hong Kong workshop a program will be established by the four directors. The results from the workshop will be further improved upon when more theater workers from the fours selected cities join their team in Shanghai in late October. A piece of theatre work will be developed under the directors guidance and performed in Shanghai. All directors and performers will travel together to Hong Kong, Taipei and Tokyo through out November. They will conduct more research and collaborate in each city to modify and let the work grow with their own experiences.
In August the four directors, with two actors from Tokyo and Hong Kong have been living and working together at Tong Sze Hong’s residence in Meiwou, Hong Kong for a week. During their stay, they made discussions and improvised moves based on the text by Lu Xun, one of the most important writers and thinkers from last century of China. The directors tried to build connections between Lu Xun’s text to their lives today; they wanted to find a possible way to collaborate on their next step in this program. After the weeklong preparation, they all wished to make this collaboration into a theatre production in October and November and wished for it to premier in Shanghai.
Participants: Hiroshi Ohashi, Tong Sze Hong, Wang Mo Lin, Zhao Chuan，Akihiro Nakajim (Tokyo), Chen Cheng (Shanghai), Li Zhi Wen (Hong Kong) and Liu Mao Ying (Taipei)
