Straits Herald (Taiwan correspondent Xue Yang Text/Picture) You may have seen puppet performances, but manipulating puppets to write calligraphy is novel. On the 27th and 28th, the cross-strait intangible cultural exchange activities hosted by the Fujian Foreign Cultural Exchange Association, Fujian Radio, Film and Television Group, and hosted by Southeast Broadcasting Company went to Kaohsiung and Yunlin, bringing improvements to Taiwanese audiences. Wonderful performances such as string puppet calligraphy, Hakka folk songs, Nanyin performances, Liyuan opera , Southern Fujian nursery rhymes , etc., continued the cultural friendship between the two sides.
Calligraphy performance with puppets
Accompanied by cheerful music, Li Mingqing, the inheritor of Fujian puppet show , walked onto the stage with the puppets and calmly "tested his skills". The audience left their seats one after another to experience the master's stunts up close. I saw Li Mingqing pulling the thin string, lifting and waving his fingers up and down, left and right, and the puppet smoothly wrote "Both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family" on the white paper. After writing the five words, everyone in the audience was amazed.
On the 28th, this scene appeared at the Sanhao International Hotel in Yunlin County. The superb performance by Fujian folk artists was an eye-opener for the audience on the island. Just the day before, Li Mingqing used a string puppet to write the four words "I love Kaohsiung" during her performance at Kaohsiung Station, which also won applause from the audience.
Minnan nursery rhyme performance
It is understood that this is the second time Southeast Broadcasting has joined hands with Fujian intangible cultural heritage inheritors to perform exchanges and performances on the island. Compared with last year, the program is richer and more interactive. In addition to puppet performances, it includes Hakka folk song "Watching the Moonlight on August 15th", Nanyin performance "Fish Sinking in the Wild Goose", Liyuan Opera "Appreciating Flowers", Southern Fujian nursery rhyme "Zheng Chenggong", Fujian Guqin "Remembering Old Friends", etc. The performances at both stops over the two days were well received by the public. The inheritors of the intangible cultural heritage used "eighteen kinds of martial arts" and performed wonderfully to demonstrate the long-standing cultural affinity between Fujian and Taiwan.
Yunlin native Li Yimei is a loyal listener of Southeast Radio. She heard that Fujian’s intangible cultural heritage will be performed at her doorstep, so she called the hotline to sign up half a month ago. In the Jiangjiazou Puppet Head Carving Technique Experience Area, Li Yimei was the first to raise her hand to participate in the interaction, and followed Huang Xueling to experience Quanzhou puppet head carving. "Yunlin is the hometown of puppet theater in Taiwan. It also has the Puppet Head Museum and the Puppet Theater Hall. Everyone has loved watching puppet shows since they were young, so they are all looking forward to this performance. This time, I had a good experience at the scene, and it really lived up to its reputation. "Li Yimei was very excited when she received a bag puppet as a gift from teacher Huang Xueling.
Nanyin performance
“Seeing so many Quanzhou elements brought tears to my eyes several times!” Lin Wenxiong, president of the Taiwan Herald, said, “I am from Lukang, and my ancestral home is Quanzhou. Seeing so many performances from my hometown is really exciting. I’m so touched! I’ve always heard my grandma talk about Quanzhou since I was a child. It’s so cordial to meet people from my hometown and hear my hometown dialect today.”
Liu Yimin, vice chairman of Fujian Radio, Film and Television Group, said that the two events were full and the audience participated in the program. The interaction was enthusiastic and everyone, regardless of gender, old or young, watched with gusto, fully demonstrating the infinite charm of intangible cultural heritage.
