The Temple of Chio-tian Xuan-nu (Goddess of the Ninth Heaven) in Taichung took in a number of junior high and high school dropouts to form the Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe. Through learning drum skills, these teenagers completely transformed their lives. For years, Chio Tian experienced a g...Read more
The Temple of Chio-tian Xuan-nu (Goddess of the Ninth Heaven) in Taichung took in a number of junior high and high school dropouts to form the Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe. Through learning drum skills, these teenagers completely transformed their lives. For years, Chio Tian experienced a great deal of hardship in their pioneering work. In order to gain more opportunities for these young people to perform, Director Xu has helped them overcome challenges by having them walk around the island with a drum on their backs and climb Jade Mountain to gain them media exposure. His original goal was to train them to be persistent and tough-minded. In 2011, the troupe persevered through another hardship: it took up the challenge of the Ultra Marathons in the Four Harshest Climates in the World: a 250-kilometer trek in the Sahara Desert. The Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe represented Taiwan in the marathon under the name: The Traveler—San Tai-zi. Troupe members took turns putting on the 10-kg costumes of San Tai-zi deity on their 7-day 250 kilometer journey in the desert.
After experiencing the difficult training and discipline in the desert, the production group of Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe came up with an interesting idea concerning the skill and practice of a new show and finally performed The Traveler: San Tai-zi for the first time in Kaohsiung in 2012. The show is divided into seven stages, including: “Drumming with Bloody Drumsticks,” “Surging Waves,” “Worship to Heaven”, “Guang-jiang-shou”, “Divine Commanders,” “The Drum of the Dragon King,” and “Supreme Battle Drums.”
Category | Folk Acrobatics |
Type | Folk Performance |
Chinese Title | 行者三太子 |
Group | Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe |
Creative staff | Chio Tian Folk Drums & Art Troupe |
Premiere | 2012-05-26 |
Venue | Guang Rong Pier, Kaohsiung |
Duration | 48min |
Image Source |