Taiwan brings jazz and dance to George Town Festival

Taipei, July 30 (CNA) Taiwanese jazz musicians and dancers will join local and international artists at Malaysia's 16th George Town Festival, which runs Aug. 2-10 and features more than 50 performances.

Two Taiwanese groups -- the Stacey Wei Quartet and Hung Dance -- will stage four performances as part of the festival's "Isle to Isle" section, a Penang-Taiwan collaboration now in its seventh year.

The Stacey Wei Quartet, led by trumpeter Stacey Wei (魏廣晧), will perform two shows on Aug. 2 and 3. Formed for the occasion, the ensemble includes Taiwan's "King of Drums" Rich Huang (黃瑞豐), pianist Guras Batu (許聰義) and double bass player Liu Yu-chia (劉育嘉).

Malaysian keyboardist Tay Cher Siang (鄭澤相) will join the Taiwanese quartet later in their sets, performing original pieces and familiar Taiwanese and Malaysian tunes, Taiwan's Ministry of Culture said in a press release Wednesday.

Hung Dance, a contemporary dance troupe, will perform its piece "Birdy" (羽人) on Aug. 9 and 10.

The piece blends tai chi movements and traditional Chinese opera gestures with elements such as Peking opera's feathered headpieces, exploring themes of constraint, transformation and transcendence, the statement said.

Previously staged to sold-out audiences at the Off Avignon Festival in France and the American Dance Festival, the piece's George Town premiere will mark its first performance in Asia outside Taiwan, the statement added.

Launched in 2008 to celebrate George Town's designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the George Town Festival has become a major annual arts event in Southeast Asia.

The "Isle to Isle" project was launched in 2019 to highlight cultural ties between Taiwan and Penang, through a collaboration between the festival's curatorial team and the Culture Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECRO) in Malaysia.

Since then, the Taiwan segment has become a staple of the festival, the statement said.

Ahead of the performances, the festival will host a jazz seminar on Aug. 1 titled "And All That Jazz: Stories of Malaysia and Taiwan," featuring Wei, Huang and Tay. The free session -- already fully booked -- will explore the development of jazz in both countries.

A series of jazz workshops will also be held during the festival, including a jazz drumming masterclass led by Huang, the statement said.

The performances aim to reflect this year's festival theme of "Connection" and reaffirm "Isle to Isle" as a platform for cross-cultural dialogue, the statement said.