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Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts Presents “Sound of the Ocean” by U Theatre 優人神鼓:聽海之心 Saturday, March 27, 2010, 8 PM Cutler Majestic Theatre Directions 219 Tremont St. Boston, MA 
Lecture demonstration at HarvardMusic Dept Paine Hall Details Sunday March 28, 2010 7 pm |
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Lecture demonstration at Harvard Monday 3/29/2010 Details |
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$100: VIP ( click here )
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$45, $35, $25 (students $5 off) ( click here )
(same ticket will be
$50, $40, $30 at door) -
100 free student tickets for age 14 and up with valid ID are available at our website only. One ticket per request. The best available seat will be given on the concert day in the order of online requests received. ( click icon at right )
Children under 6 not admitted.
Cutler Majestic Theatre box office: 617-824-8000,
www.MAJ.org,
World Journal Book Store: 617-451-1309, Ip Piano School: 617-542-9129
Online ticket :
www.ChinesePerformingArts.net
,
www.MAJ.org ,
www.Telecharge.com
Information : phone : 781-259-8195 ,
email :
Foundation@ChinesePerformingArts.net
Sound of the Ocean
(first performed in
1998)
A compelling, seamless work of rhythm and movement in 100 minutes, Sound of
the Ocean was created by U-Theatre under the direction of Liu Ruo-Yu and
master drummer Huang Chih-Chun. An intense physical and emotional
experience, the work traces the cyclical journey of water from a drop to a
stream, from a river to the ocean.
Five distinct yet beautifully interwoven sections evoke the sounds and
sensations of water, its elemental cool surges, gentle ebbs, and insistent
rat-a-tat-tats. The five are animated by a theatrical tension devoid of
explicit narrative. It is propelled by rhythms beat out on temple bells,
gongs, and skinned drums large and small. The collective expressive power of
the group is made possible by the extra-ordinary technical and athletic
prowess of the individual performers. Daring feats of speed and precision
create huge dynamic arcs as the piece moves from section to section.
The instruments themselves, some enhanced by large driftwood structures,
create a striking visual as well as sonic landscape. At once hypnotic and
electrifying, Sound of the Ocean expresses the ongoing search for an
artistic form that captures the essence, the preciousness, of life. With a
spare grace and clarity, it illuminates U-Theatre’s creative process which
centers on the concentric relationships of individual to the collective, and
the larger natural and spiritual environments.
Since its premiere in 1998 at Avignon Festival, Sound of the Ocean has been
performed more than 120 times around the world including engagements at the
Venice Biennale, Lyon Biennale, Spain’s Millenia Festival, the Sao Paulo
Arts Festival, Singapore Arts Festival, Bergen international Festival and
BITE: 02 at the Barbican, London, Next Wave Festival (BAM), New York,
Chekhov International Theatre Festival, Moscow.
U Theatre of Taiwan
The ‘U’ of U-Theatre is a phonetic transcript of a Chinese character meaning
‘superior, excellence’. In ancient China, this word also referred to
‘professional actor’.
U-Theatre was founded by Ms Liu Ruo-Yu, the artistic director. Ms Liu had
studied theatre in New York University, and had attended professional
workshops led by the Polish master Jerzy Grotowski (1933-1998). When she
returned to Taiwan, she decided to dedicate herself to the exploration of
the body and mind of performers. In order to reach this goal, she founded
U-Theatre on Laochuan Mountain on the outskirts of Taipei.
Founded in 1988, U-Theatre may be best described as philosophy in motion.
For this company, performance is not an end in itself, but an aspect of a
holistic way of life oriented in the “Tao”(the way). In its works, the
relationship of the individual to the whole community – and by extension, of
the group to its audiences worldwide – is portrayed without explicit
narrative or the creation of imagined characters. The result is a
fascinating and unique mode of contemporary theatre that is process-based
finely tuned and performer dependent. It is grounded in a collective
experience predicated on each member’s personal search for enlightenment and
balance.
U Theatre’s rigorous aesthetic depend on disciplined training in various
forms –
acting, martial arts, drumming, Tai-Chi, dance, meditation – some drawn from
the East, and some from the West. “Like monks preparing themselves for a
grand ceremony…their virtuosity is spectacular, ”said France’s Le Figaro of
U-Theatre’s awe-inspiring performance at 1998 Avignon Arts Festival.
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 Thank you for your generous contribution to Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts
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