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Imagination Unlocked in the Mind's Playground: EUREKA! 2.0 Rediscovering Weiwuying
National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying) has aspired to be a startup hub for theater-makers; in 2017, that goal began to take clearer shape as Weiwuying celebrated the launch of a four-year partnership of the Emergence project initiated be Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, as the only partner from Asia out of eight partners. In 2020, start from Friday, May 1 to Sunday, May 31, EUREKA! 2.0 Rediscovering Weiwuying would regale the audience with a variety of artistic treats including exhibition, performances, to a creative and experimental lab, for a premier “EUREKA!” experience at the auditorium upon its inauguration.
“EUREKA!” is an interjection that denotes a discovery or invention, its origin dates back to Ancient Greece; Weiwuying, being a wavemaker that chronicles the moments of creativity and beauty of our life, pays homage to that legacy by spotlighting the dynamic between space, the audience and the theater-makers – including musicians, space and set designers, directors, choreographers, and circus theater creators – to develop a space for surprise encounters, experiment, and creative matchmaking; EUREKA! 2.0 Rediscovering Weiwuying, therefore, transports the audience, performers, designers and the crew to a sky's-the-limit location to experiment and explore the possibilities of theater-making at art centers, parks, and in day-to-day scenarios.
Weiwuying's General and Artistic Ddirector Chien Wen-pin noted that “Weiwuying is more than a theater: every little nook in an architectural space can be a fountain of inspirations for every creator. EUREKA! 2.0 Rediscovering Weiwuying is a continuation of the four-year partnership between Weiwuying and the PQ; cross-border creative collaborations continue seamlessly through these three projects, as a treasure-hunt experience unfurls at Weiwuying's public space to expand public participation. COVID-19 has stretched the distance between us, indeed; yet our dedication to art will not waver. Here at Weiwuying, art and the community mirror each other in their aesthetic pursuits; art also infuses more value and color into the human experience.”
EUREKA! 2.0 Rediscovering Weiwuying takes place daily throughout the month of May, from 11:00 to 21:00 at the Crown Hall Reading Corner on the third floor, and the Crown Terrace (West). The exhibition showcases a curated collection of text and illustrations, footage, performance designs and props, directing the viewers to explore Weiwuying and Prague Quadrennial, journeying through the development history and collaboration of the project.
Lift Me Up is the brainchild of Weiwuying's EUREKA Project. It's an eclectic fusion of Taiwan's folk customs, the religious procession of worshippers who carry the deity in the palanquin, plus the cultural references of “Taiwan Red” and the moso bamboo. These elements are translated into a contemporary live exhibition that incorporates the trajectory tracking technology to reimage glyphomancy. Lift Me Up was premiered last year in June at Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, and it attracted an impressive international viewership.
Lift Me Up returns to Weiwuying this year following the cultural baptism of the international arts festival. A newly-evolved edition of Lift Me Up has been made a reality, thanks to the unique space design of Weiwuying: the glyphomancy scenario now strobes between the east wing of Crown Hall and Banyan Plaza to heighten the interconnectedness and relational dynamic of the two locations, so that the exploration into “the collective will” and “the will of God” can be better approximated. Four performances are staged on Saturday, May 9 and Sunday, May 10, at 13:30 and 16:00.
The Creative and Experimental Lab takes place as a workshop graced by 37 theater-makers hailed from the art and education communities, plus the public sector throughout Taiwan. Indoor space and outdoor areas at Weiwuying is opened between May 4 (Mon) and May 9 (Sat) to art makers for brainstorming, experiments, and hands-on applications, becoming an “anything goes” experience and collaborative platform. On May 8 (Friday), participating artists would present their fruit of labor between 14:00 and 16:00.
Per the directive of the CDC concerning public gatherings, an assessment on six risk indicators will be conducted before any program launch. A preventive response system is determined accordingly, as social distancing measure is implemented throughout the course of the program to minimize risks to the audience and performers. Sterilization and cleaning measures are in place every hour. Temperature screening is taken for all members of the crew, who are also asked to wear face masks throughout the program. Preventive services are modified accordingly per the CDC instructions. Members of the public are also encouraged to hand-wash frequently, and seek medical attention ASAP should they experience fever, or symptoms of Acute Upper Respiratory Tract Infection.
