“On October 11, a ceremony and concert inaugurated the National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying) located in the international port city of southern Taiwan,” writes Anthony Brown in Monday’s (10/15) MusicalAmerica.com (subscription required). “Designed by the Dutch firm Mecanoo and set amid a 116-acre subtropical park, the 35-acre building includes a 2,236-seat opera house, a 1,981-seat concert hall, a 1,210-seat playhouse, a 434-seat recital hall, an outdoor theater, and a plaza open to the public…. The opening ceremonies included remarks by Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen…. Chien Wen-Pin, Weiwuying’s executive and artistic director, led the combined forces of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, the Kaohsiung Symphony Orchestra, the Kaohsiung Chamber Choir, and musicians from the Kaohsiung Music Alliance…. [There were] outdoor performances of Taiwanese traditional dance as well as theater, opera, puppetry, and a digital light show. Highlights of the upcoming inaugural season, starting Jan. 1, 2019, include concerts by the Berlin Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel and the Bavarian Radio Symphony under Maris Janssons; the Cloud Gate Dance Theater of Taiwan, La Fura dels Baus, and the Sydney Dance Company; and the flagship biannual festival Taiwan Dance Platform.”
Posted October 17, 2018
