U-Theater from Taiwan will present “Sound of the Ocean,” a monumental dance show about water, in Shenzhen on March 25-26.

    Originally created in 1998 to celebrate the theater’s 10th anniversary as part of a performance at the world-renowned French Festival d’Avignon, “Sound of the Ocean” tells of the “water of life, which nourishes our souls.” The music, drumming and movements simulate the remarkably diverse and distinctive sounds of water in its five sections: “Collapse,” “Flowing Water,” “Breakers,” “Listening to the Ocean Heart” and “Sound of the Ocean,” as individual drops gather together to form a stream and streams create a river which eventually rushes into the ocean.

    “Sound of the Ocean” is not a narrative drama performance. There is neither story line, nor dialogue. The flowing of water represents the journey of life, and each audience member is set to experience their own life story right there, and respond themselves to “Sound of the Ocean.” The show is a sharing experience, between the performers and the audience — sharing life, sharing continuous moments and sharing the present.

    The U-Theater was founded by Liu Ruo-yu in 1988. The pronunciation of the letter “U” is similar to the Chinese pinyin of “优,” meaning “excellence.” In ancient China, the character also meant “performers.”

    A leading theatrical performer, Liu earned her MA in theater arts from New York University and studied under Polish director Jerzy Grotowski, which changed her entire outlook and approach to life and clarified her understanding that a theater piece, in essence, was the expression of “an individual’s attitude toward life.” This philosophy became her fundamental approach to performance art.

    In 1993, together with drumming master Huang Chih-chun, Liu introduced novel facets of drumming meditation and martial arts to create a series of original works integrated with a wide range of elements drawn from music, literature, drama, dance and ritual into her works. These aesthetic syntheses have not only added another dimension to the traditional Chinese expression in modern art, but also earned U-Theater much acclaim and many invitations to perform internationally.

    Time: 8 p.m., March 25-26

    Tickets: 80-880 yuan

    Booking: 400-610-3721

    Venue: Shenzhen Grand Theater, 5018 Shennan Road East, Luohu District (罗湖区深南东路5018号深圳大剧院)

    Metro: Line 1 or 2, Grand Theater Station (大剧院站), Exit B

    (SD News)