In memory of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s 156th birth anniversary, 11 groups from all over the world including more than thousand people were invited to pay tribute to Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s statue at the hall. Besides, National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall first cooperated with Guo Guang Opera Company of National Center for Traditional Arts to present the well-known performance of “Sanchakou (Crossroad).” This cross-field cooperation not only shows the affability of the traditional art’s exquisite performance but also fully manifests the harmony between different culture and arts.
Director-general Wang Lan-sheng of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall mentioned that fraternity and selflessness are the important elements of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s thought. His perseverance in the revolutionary career is also admirable. In memory of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s 156th birth anniversary, National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall specially arranges the splendid Kung Fu performance of Peking Opera on the anniversary. Besides, the hall also holds a conference, a book-giving activity, Foreign Students Chinese Public Speaking Competition, the award-giving ceremony of Chungshan Youth Art Awards, and exhibitions to bring enthusiasm and warmth in the winter month of November.
Before the opening of the hall in the morning, Director-general Wang Lan-sheng led all staff to pay floral tribute to Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s statue as the prelude to today’s memorial activities. Besides the scheduled groups, there were many visitors on the scene bowing to Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s statue to give tribute. The “book-giving activity” was held at the west corridor of the hall at 9:30. Director-general Wang Lan-sheng also explained and gave out The Whole Story of the Establishment of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall-Wang Da-hong’s Compromise and Torment in person on the scene. This time, the books of diverse and rich categories range from the books on Sunology to the artists’ great painting albums published by the hall in the past years, including the master artists’ work collection of western paintings, ink paintings, calligraphy, print, photography, and sculpture such as Cao Qiu Pu, the founder of Danlu Calligraphy Society, Wu Mei-ling, who has dedicated to fine arts education for more than 80 years, Lin Yen-chu, a master of poetry, calligraphy, and painting, and Gu Chong-guang, who excels in the creation of mixed media. More than 1000 books in total were all given to the public for free.
“Sanchakou (Crossroad)” was staged in front of the statue of the main hall in the afternoon. Leader of Guo Guang Opera Company, Chang Yu-hua, led the director, Lee Chia-chi, and the actors, Chou Shen-hsing and Pan Shou-he, to give the splendid performance. The story is about the fight in the dark night between good and evil, which interprets and commemorates Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s revolutionary spirit in founding the nation and corresponding to the global fight against the pandemic to greet brightness. Besides, the audience who learn about the opera performance for the first time will be able to appreciate the aesthetics in the process of the actors’ shaping the stage image. Through the speaker’s explanation about the actors’ movements of hand, eye, body, method, and step, singing, and recitals, the audience will have a deeper understanding about the movements of the actors and the contents of the performance. Guo Guang Opera Company has long dedicated to the educational promotions combining the different fields. A series of demonstrative and promotional speeches have been planned from the classic Chinese opera performances to pass on traditional opera aesthetics and integrate with contemporary society. To deepen the art exchanges, Director-general Wang Lan-sheng also emphasized that the hall will not only hold more performances next year but also introduce a series of speeches of traditional art so that the public will learn and understand more about the beauty of traditional art.
Besides “National Governance and Sustainable Development: National Defense and Livelihood Academic Conference,” which has been held on November 4, “The Series Activities in Memory of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s 156th Birth Anniversary” also includes “2021 The Practice of The World For All People and Great Love-Sun Yat-sen’s Thought and Contemporary Academic Conference 2021,” on November 13, “2021 Foreign Students Chinese Public Speaking Competition” on November 16, “Depicting Taiwan—An Exhibition of the Collection from National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall 2021” at Tainan Art Museum on November 20, and “2021 Chungshan Youth Art Awards Exhibition and Opening Ceremony” on November 27. For more information, please visit the website of National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, www.yatsen.gov.tw.