Cheng Tsung-lung
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Lim Giong

A Howl of Rebellion

Commissioned by the 2016 Taiwan International Festival of Arts, 13 Tongues is Cheng Tsung-lung’s first full-length work with Cloud Gate 2. In the work, Cheng challenges dancers to go beyond their physical limits, breaking through the restraints of one-dimensional arts, by adding vocal elements into the performances.

A legendary figure in the 1960s from Bangka, the oldest district and once the most prosperous area in Taipei, “Thirteen Tongues” was a street artist lauded for his remarkable acts portraying multiple roles, imitating characters of male, female, old and young, telling stories and anecdotes of the past and present.

Cheng’s 13 Tongues brings back the vigorous and exuberant vitality of Bangka: howls on the streets, lingering of old Taiwanese folksongs in the air, chanting of incantation, religious procession of worshippers. On stage, against the projection of a massive carp flittering in the sky, dancers stamp and clap with rhythms, whirl around and move across the stage like an enchanted troop, presenting a bizarre spectrum of physical movements.