Taiwanese sword dancer wins 2nd place in French 'Got Talent' contest

Paris, Dec. 27 (CNA) Sword dancer Titos Tsai (蔡宏毅) from Taiwan has finished his journey on "La France a un incroyable talent," the French edition of the "Got Talent" global reality television series, as runner-up.

The French public -- via phone voting -- voted the Taiwanese performer into second place in the talent show's 18th season on Dec. 22.

The contest this year consisted of four stages, Tsai told CNA in an interview via telephone the following day. "In the first three stages, I performed the very best bits of my most popular acts over the last decade."

"But the performance I put on in the final round was brand new. I had to choreograph a new routine and craft brand new elements -- flying swords and a dragon slayer -- in 20 days," he said.

"Both the sword and flame are my wings and they kindled the fire of my passionate soul," Tsai said.

He told CNA joyously that his performance at the finals was perfect. "I allowed the world to see Taiwan."

As one of Taiwan's most prominent faces in the international fire and sword dance scene, Tsai impressed the France's Got Talent judges during the Dec. 22 finals when he wielded a 3-meter-long dragon slayer with a blade engulfed in flames.

Tsai also included various Taiwanese elements in his stage design for the innovative performance, including four drums played by Taiwanese performers.

"I enjoyed performing at temples in Taiwan, and drums have been a crucial part of Taiwan's temple parade culture," Tsai said.

During the fire-and-sward performance on Dec. 22, Tsai incorporated the 12-kilogram blade into the dance, which he said symbolized a flaming phoenix rising from the ashes.

Tsai also gave a special shout-out to judge Éric Antoine, who he said had taken it upon himself to promote Taiwan during the show.

A seasoned sword dancer

According to Tsai, now in his mid-20s, he debuted his sword dance online in 2020 with the video receiving around 100 million views globally.

"The doors (to the world) were opening" to him at that time but soon then closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tsai said.

It was not until January this year he had the chance to perform his sword dance on the international stage, he added, referring to his show at the 42nd "Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain" (The World Festival of the Circus of Tomorrow), where he took home the bronze medal and the Prix Cirque du Soleil trophy.

Tsai also featured in this year's America's Got Talent, where he wowed judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Sofía Vergara, Howie Mandel, and show host Terry Crews with his fluid movements in his audition that featured three swords.

When asked by Cowell what his dream was, Tsai replied in English: "My dream is very simple, very simple. My dream is just to stand here. Standing here is my dream."

While Tsai passed with flying colors after receiving four resounding yeses from the judges, he was not selected during the judges' deliberation stage so did not progress to the live show segment.

The stumble, however, did not discourage Tsai from continuing to pursue his Got Talent dream and he wound up taking second place in France on Dec. 22, coming just behind France's dance troupe Mega Unity.

"French people, compared to those in other countries, were able to notice the nuance and creative process of my performances," Tsai said.

"My 'Rising Phoenix' piece was created to thank the people of France for giving me a pair of wings that allowed me to cross oceans and show people who I am," he told CNA.

Tsai further said that he was aware that many votes that pivoted him to second place in France were from Taiwanese expats, whom he thanked for their support.

"I wasn't alone in France," Tsai said. "When I was on stage, I could feel the support of 23 million people. Taiwan is a place where people can dream."