BEHALF—Pichet Klunchun X Wu-Kang Chen
HORSE
Date：2018.05.25
Venue ：Cloud Gate Theater
Comments on the Finalist
BEHALF questions tradition by starting with “deconstructing.” Structure-wise, the work displays an intentional sense of uncertainty through choices that affect the formation of viewing results, attempting to unveil the crucial forces that create traditional appearances—that is, the arbitrary connection between “tradition” and “power.” The traditional approach to dancing used in Taiwan mainly focuses on the formal logic of movement or the presence of the body, which could be related to “constructing” the body’s subjectivity. In comparison, the unknown quality, uncertainty and incompleteness of BEHALF, along with the introspective quest unfolded through Chen Wu-Kang’s body and the decisive, distinct gestures by Pichet Klunchun, reflect Chen’s life to some extent as the work conveys his reflections on the current stage of his career stemming from the modern dance training system in Taiwan. It is also the beginning of his subsequent learning of and contemplation on traditional dances.
(Commentator: FAN Xiang-Jun)
Artwork Introduction
BEHALF—Pichet Klunchun X Wu-Kang Chen, an attempt to create a new form of international collaboration and performance, is co-created by dancer/choreographer Chen Wu-Kang from Taiwan and Pichet Klunchen from Thailand, revealing individual, collective and intercultural thinking and discussion on tradition. Respectively trained in ballet and Thai traditional dance, Chen and Klunchen have both dived into the world of contemporary dance. In 2016, HORSE invited Klunchen to Taiwan and collaborate with Chen to explore the topic conceived by both artists—the tradition of body. A two-year journey subsequently unfolded, characterized by cultural interactions, residencies, intensive physical dialogues, discussions on traditional issues and exchanges of their individual culture and personal stories, and eventually bloomed into their co-creation, BEHALF. In the performance, the two dancers express themselves through physical performance, examining tradition and addressing what it means to be contemporary through a dialectic process while incorporating the audience into the performance with the design of the creative form.
About the Artist
HORSE
The Chinese character, “驫” (pronounced as “biao”), refers to a herd of galloping horses. Founded by choreographers and performers including Chen Wu-Kang and Su Wei-Chia in 2004, the dance company is known and praised for its collective creation, precise physical performance and unique theatrical style. In 2008, nominated for the first time, their work, Velocity, was awarded the Performing Arts Award in the 6th Taishin Arts Award. In 2013, the dance company won the First Prize and Audience Award in Germany’s Kurt Jooss Preis with the work, 2 Men. In recent years, Chen and Su, the two key figures of the dance company, have developed their independent creative paths, seeking new forces of creativity as their contemporary dance careers have entered the fifteenth year in Taiwan. In addition to creating their own dances, HORSE also engages in multiple international collaborations, dance education programs and curatorial projects, among which are the improvisation platform Primal Chaos that combines dance and music and Back to the Moment Dancing Talking Bar, which features dialogues and discussions between creators and critics.
Production Team
Choreographers & Performers｜ Pichet Klunchun、Wu-Kang Chen
Dramaturge｜ Tang Fu-Kuen
Technical Director｜ Chia-Ming Liu
Lighting Design｜Takayuki Fujimoto, Kinsei
Costume Consultant｜ Bing-Hao Lin, Keith Lin
Stage Design｜ Yin-Chiao Liao
Props and Stage Mechanism Design｜Yin-Chiao Liao, Gubing
Musician｜ Shih-Yang, LeeYu-Wen Hung
Stage Manager｜ Jiou-Fang Peng
Technical Crew｜
Ching-Hung Cheng, Sing-Hai Liu,
Zu-Kung Sie, Shu-Wei Wan, Ping-Shin Lin
Photography｜ Etang Chen
Viedo Record｜
Kuan-Yu Chen , Shin-En Chen, Hsiang-Wen Juan
Graphic Design｜ Mistroom
Writer｜Wei-Jyun Tao
General Director｜ Wei-Chia Su
Artistic Director｜ Wu-Kang Chen
Producer｜ Wen Huang
Coordinator｜Ming-Hwa Yeh
Associate Producer｜ Spring Chen
Administration & Ticketing｜ Ching-Tzu Chien、 Ho-Ju Wu
Rehearsal Assistant｜ Yu-Ting Fang
創作暨演出 陳武康
《半身相》的作品名稱，是先有英文，再有中文。英文的Behalf既指「代表」，拆解後又有「成為（be）一半（half）」之意。這是陳武康與泰國編舞家皮歇・克朗淳（Pichet Klunchun）的共同作品，而合作的契機就從對傳統的追尋展開。
何為傳統？誰的傳統？
2015年，陳武康剛從紐約駐村回台一段時間，近半年的沈澱期結束，迎來妻子懷孕、即將成為人父的新階段。同年，舞蹈家皮歇・克朗淳受邀來台交流，舉辦以傳統為題的講座，經引介到訪驫舞劇場的排練場。一小時的交流中，兩人相談甚歡，談自身背景、談舞蹈，也談爸爸經。後來，陳武康向皮歇提出合作邀請，主題就放在「何為傳統」。
「那時候他整個人散發的氣息，就是他很『瞭』他在哪裡——不管是社會定位、自己的歷史，或自己在做的藝術。」出生於泰北漁村的皮歇・克朗淳，16歲起向泰國箜舞大師學習傳統舞蹈，後來前往美國深造，進而跨足當代舞蹈創作，將傳統舞融入現代詮釋，也成立泰國第一個當代舞團，用當代突破傳統格局，獲得國際肯定，但也被家鄉稱為「離經叛道」。另一頭，出生在高雄左營海軍醫院、廣西外省第三代的陳武康從12歲學習芭蕾、23歲加入紐約舞團，一路接受西方傳統訓練，然而從芭蕾舞者到當代舞蹈編創，他反思越發強烈。「從小學西方藝術，就有很多自己覺得奇怪的地方，但都一直忽略，到開始自己做創作的時候，你發現沒辦法面對。」他在皮歇身上看到似乎很「純粹」的東西，期待在合作中得到靈感，看清關於身為藝術家、舞蹈工作者，到底什麼才是自己的傳統。
兩人於是展開長達兩年的交流，陳武康到泰國了解當地文化，皮歇也跟著陳武康在台灣到處探訪。友誼搭建的同時，兩人對傳統展開一連串討論，陳武康發現信佛教、跳箜舞、講泰文的皮歇看似擁有一切傳統符碼，卻也在自我質問中慢慢走到現在，專為皇室獻演的箜舞，更來自柬埔寨吳哥王朝，是東南亞文化融混的證明。於是，究竟誰是誰的傳統？源頭何處？誰曾經「擁有」傳統？傳統又如何散逸傳播？在探尋這些問題的同時，陳武康原有的混淆也越加清晰。「我慢慢認清，我自己的傳統跟他者無關，跟社會大結構的傳統又不見得有絕對關聯。」個人傳統可以乘載多種面向，追問根源的同時也伴隨諸多選擇，傳統理解既是動態的過程，也是身體經驗的歷史。
挑戰預期的作品結構
從深刻對話開始，兩人慢慢發展舞作，然而《半身相》最終的樣貌，並非讓兩人以舞蹈進行台泰文化的分頭表述，而是在各自的時間、空間中，對話自我與傳統的關係，然而此對話不只停在個人傳統與生命經驗的揭露，也探向兩人皆所處的劇場傳統。舞作分為三段結構，第一段在澎湃的在地現場音樂演奏後，皮歇與陳武康出現，分坐於舞台兩側小桌後，以手機輪流計時、等待，欣賞另一人完成其三分鐘舞蹈。皮歇以箜舞面具、外袍、神獸等傳統物件及符號的拋卸、褻玩，回應自己在傳統中叛逆與反思的位置；陳武康則運用身體細節動作及物件，呈現自我提問與回答。輪番跳舞五個循環結束，兩人謝幕，接著直接搬出椅子，向觀眾表示進入演後座談，並在觀眾的問答過後，安排一段即興。只是最後這段演出將喊停的權力交到觀眾手上，被交付手舉牌的一位觀眾可隨時決定舉牌、結束演出。演出形式出乎觀眾預料，不同場次的結果也不同——有三分鐘、二十分鐘後舉起，也有一場，兩人未有機會進行最後演出便告結束。
陳武康說第一段與皮歇的演出以「彼此尊重」的原則呈現，「反正舞台就是你的！其實這也是劇場的傳統，當有一個獨舞發生的時候，另外一個就是在旁邊不動。」而中間座談的安插，也希望能在討論交流後，以後段即興作為回應。然而演出結構的安排，以及以個人生命乘載取代異國文化再現的內容，挑戰觀眾觀看期待，也迎來部分反彈。陳武康坦承對此未有過多預料，但也認為舞作刺激觀者思考自身對演出傳統的預期，仍具有意義。至於結束時刻的不可預料，陳武康說，他曾與皮歇討論「何時是最好的開始與結束？」，兩人的回答不約而同，都在「任何一個時刻」。
邁向創作學習新階段
《半身相》是驫舞劇場首次大規模的共創計畫，其跨文化合作不只在編創者，也包含工作團隊。過程中雙方甚至曾經全體移地至日本城崎駐村排練。在這個跨國資深表演藝術工作者的合作經驗裡，陳武康啟發滿滿，感受到工作過程的過癮與挑戰。他稱自己每次做作品都像是認識一個新朋友，而做完這個作品，他發現自己更能在工作過程中享受。陳武康和皮歇正持續合作，也開始自身創作歷程的新階段：「學東西，改變自己。」他接下來創作計畫都和「學習」有關，要透過學習體驗，更新狀態，再從自身輸出，「功還是要練，但更多的功在身體之外。」走了兩年多的創作歷程，陳武康開始跟自己的身份和平共處，也如同《半身相》名稱隱喻，帶著未完成的自己相遇他方，未竟之路仍向前展開，但始終在路上。
（採訪撰文／許祐綸）
