WHAT HAS BEEN SAID ABOUT
PORTRAIT OF THE FAMILIES... |
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| A powerful epic theatre. |
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| --China Times, Taipei |
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| We are unlikely to encounter in the foreseeable future another choreography
equal to Lin Hwai-min's latest and thus far best work. |
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| --Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Frankfurt |
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| It is a glorious work of art, brilliantly composed from image, sound and dance,
imaginatively choreographed through the alteration of group and solo work,
perfectly danced by a company that have long born any comparison with the
very best European and American ensembles. |
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| --Ballet International |
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| Taiwan's history may seem remote, even strange to us. But in the manner it was presented
by Cloud Gate Dance Theatre it was touching. What choreographer Lin Hwai-min
achieved in 90 minutes with Portrait of the Families was not a dogmatic
school lesson but contemporary dance theatre of the highest level. Lin told
the story of the last 100 years of Taiwan's history by concentrating on
the individual stories of people, their suffering and survival. Though specific,
Portrait of the Families is of general truth.
Hundred of photos show mass scenes, soldiers, destroyed cars, young women in fashionable
clothes-a hint that Taiwan was strongly influenced by the West. Through
Arvo Part's music Misere and Fratres together with traditional Chinese
music and interviews it was possible to follow the story without reading
the translations in the program leaflet.
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| --Der Standard, Vienna |
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| Portrait of the families is a finely worked out production which brings together
with great understanding all the techniques of dance theatre. A group of
talented dancers move to the background of film footage, and the contrast
is poignant.
The work is accompanied by texts translated into English, relating stories
of disappearance and murder. These stories are depicted with sensitivity
and restraint and are interwoven with dance pieces and traditional Taiwanese
theatre.
…the mix of all the visual elements succeeds, both cynically and with genuine
pain, to demonstrate another terrible episode of man's existence. …the
message towards the end-"the inability to speak pain"-raises
the level of the work and redeems it.
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| --Yedit Ahronot, Jerusalem |
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beauty of this company is the superb combination of dance techniques, Western
and modern, with the rich means of expression of traditional Chinese dance.
The same with the music, traditional Chinese music alongside contemporary
works by Arvo Part. These combinations are indeed magical. The members of
the company are also excellent. Their bodily and technical professionalism
moves from the superb to the sublime. |
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| --Ma'ariv, Jerusalem |
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