PRODUCTION King Lear [Lier zai ci]
Data Type：news
Author：Wu, Taijing
Title：Taiwanese Group Performs King Lear at Edinburgh Festival
Source：Taipei Times
Place：Taipei
Date：2011/8/11
Language：Chinese; English
Abstract：Taiwan’s Contemporary Legend Theatre (CLT) is invited to perform their classic work King Lear at the Edinburgh International Festival. Starring Wu Hsing-kuo, this solo show employs traditional jingju techniques to portray ten different characters. CLT is the only Taiwanese group invited to the 2011 festival, which focuses on Asian cultures.
With their own adapted version of William Shakespeare’s tragedy King Lear, Taiwan’s Contemporary Legend Theatre (CLT) will be showcasing their talent for British audiences at the Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) starting this weekend until next Tuesday.
King Lear is the story of a king who disposes of his estate to two of his three daughters based on their flattery. As he eventually descends into madness, his third daughter dies in prison, and the story ends in tragedy for all. The play will be performed at the 658-seat Royal Lyceum Theatre for four consecutive days starting on Aug. 13.
CLT’s version of King Lear is said to be an instant classic for the group’s artistic director and principal actor, Wu Hsing-kuo, who puts on a one-man show of 10 different roles. In the play, Wu utilizes Beijing opera’s traditional skills of song, speech, dance and combat. The characters through which he reinterprets the original King Lear also embody a mixture of the traditional Beijing opera roles of sheng (main male role), dan (all female roles), jing (forceful male roles) and chou (male clown roles).
During a recent media interview, the director of the EIF, Jonathan Mills, said this will be the first year that the festival has focused on Asian cultures. The festival aims to allow more exchanges among different cultures, and also hopes to expose audiences to the philosophies and enlightening values of a multicultural Asia. Mills also added that only invited artists are allowed to perform at the festival.
In an interview with the British newspaper the Guardian, Mills described Wu’s cast of one as “a very solitary play and a tour de force.” Wu’s group is the only artistic group from Taiwan that has ever been invited to perform at the festival. In April this year, CLT staged their adaptation of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot for French audiences in Paris.
台灣的當代傳奇劇場本週末開始到下週二，將於英國愛丁堡國際藝術節獻藝，展現改編自莎翁著名悲劇的《李爾王》給英國觀眾。
《李爾王》的故事敘述一位國王，在三位女兒中的其中兩位不停諂媚後，將領地分給她們。但最後國王陷入瘋狂，而第三位女兒也命喪牢獄。該劇自八月十三日起連續四天，於擁有六百五十八個座位的劇院 Royal Lyceum Theatre 上演。
當代傳奇劇場改編的《李爾王》，是該團藝術總監與主要演員吳興國，最經典的一齣戲。他在劇中將一人重新詮釋十角，並且應用傳統京劇中的唱、唸、做、打等技巧，又在角色中結合生、旦、淨、丑，重新詮釋莎士比亞的《李爾王》。
愛丁堡國際藝術節總監僑納森‧米爾茲於先前的媒體採訪中表示，今年愛丁堡國際藝術節首次以亞洲文化為主題，並藉此讓不同的文化彼此交流，也對藝術節觀眾展現亞洲多元文化的思維與啟發。米爾茲指出，只有獲邀的的藝術家才能在此藝術節演出。
米爾茲接受英國《衛報》採訪時描述吳興國的單人演出「非常獨自且精采」。這個由吳興國帶領的團體，是台灣唯一受邀的藝術團體。當代傳奇劇場今年四月，演出自己改編的《等待果陀》給巴黎的法國觀眾。
King Lear is the story of a king who disposes of his estate to two of his three daughters based on their flattery. As he eventually descends into madness, his third daughter dies in prison, and the story ends in tragedy for all. The play will be performed at the 658-seat Royal Lyceum Theatre for four consecutive days starting on Aug. 13.
CLT’s version of King Lear is said to be an instant classic for the group’s artistic director and principal actor, Wu Hsing-kuo, who puts on a one-man show of 10 different roles. In the play, Wu utilizes Beijing opera’s traditional skills of song, speech, dance and combat. The characters through which he reinterprets the original King Lear also embody a mixture of the traditional Beijing opera roles of sheng (main male role), dan (all female roles), jing (forceful male roles) and chou (male clown roles).
During a recent media interview, the director of the EIF, Jonathan Mills, said this will be the first year that the festival has focused on Asian cultures. The festival aims to allow more exchanges among different cultures, and also hopes to expose audiences to the philosophies and enlightening values of a multicultural Asia. Mills also added that only invited artists are allowed to perform at the festival.
In an interview with the British newspaper the Guardian, Mills described Wu’s cast of one as “a very solitary play and a tour de force.” Wu’s group is the only artistic group from Taiwan that has ever been invited to perform at the festival. In April this year, CLT staged their adaptation of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot for French audiences in Paris.
台灣的當代傳奇劇場本週末開始到下週二，將於英國愛丁堡國際藝術節獻藝，展現改編自莎翁著名悲劇的《李爾王》給英國觀眾。
《李爾王》的故事敘述一位國王，在三位女兒中的其中兩位不停諂媚後，將領地分給她們。但最後國王陷入瘋狂，而第三位女兒也命喪牢獄。該劇自八月十三日起連續四天，於擁有六百五十八個座位的劇院 Royal Lyceum Theatre 上演。
當代傳奇劇場改編的《李爾王》，是該團藝術總監與主要演員吳興國，最經典的一齣戲。他在劇中將一人重新詮釋十角，並且應用傳統京劇中的唱、唸、做、打等技巧，又在角色中結合生、旦、淨、丑，重新詮釋莎士比亞的《李爾王》。
愛丁堡國際藝術節總監僑納森‧米爾茲於先前的媒體採訪中表示，今年愛丁堡國際藝術節首次以亞洲文化為主題，並藉此讓不同的文化彼此交流，也對藝術節觀眾展現亞洲多元文化的思維與啟發。米爾茲指出，只有獲邀的的藝術家才能在此藝術節演出。
米爾茲接受英國《衛報》採訪時描述吳興國的單人演出「非常獨自且精采」。這個由吳興國帶領的團體，是台灣唯一受邀的藝術團體。當代傳奇劇場今年四月，演出自己改編的《等待果陀》給巴黎的法國觀眾。
