第 四 題

【譯文】 In 2013, marking the 40th anniversary of Cloud Gate, Mr. Lin Hwai-min choreographed Rice, inspired by the imagery of Chishang's paddy fields, and staged it at the Chishang Autumn Rice Harvest Arts Festival. Over the past five years, Rice has been performed over a hundred times globally to rave reviews. The New York Times featured Cloud Gate dancers performing in Chishang's rice paddies with a half-page spread, causing a sensation. Thanks to Cloud Gate's performances, Chishang has emerged as a wonderland yearned for by international visitors. At the end of October, Cloud Gate returned to Chishang to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Chishang Autumn Rice Harvest Arts Festival. Mr. Lin specially selected Pine Smoke, a dance work infused with the aesthetics of calligraphy, to pay tribute to his friends in Chishang, a township renowned for calligraphy. In ancient times, people burned pine wood to collect soot for making ink. Derived from this allusion, Pine Smoke renders the five shades of ink and the intriguing artistry of leaving clever blank spaces. Set against the backdrop of hundreds of hectares of waving rice paddies, the dancers guide their bodies with qi (inner energy) to echo the rolling mountains and drifting clouds. Their silk pants flutter in the wind, leading the audience to breathe and soar along with them. Taking heaven and earth as its stage, the Chishang rendition of Pine Smoke is undoubtedly more spectacular than its theater version.