
THE END OF JOURNEY
Yen-Cheng Liu
Tangible waste is called “rubbish” whereas intangible waste is called “sacrifice”. But when something, or someone, becomes a useless waste, dose it really mean that such subject or person reaches the end of journey? Nothing is made to last. So how do we define what is useless and what is meaningful? Perhaps only when we disregard meanings, could we finally feel that “nothing is in vain” and “everything will be alright”.
Sometimes we need to put important things aside and look into the vain. The End of Journey is presenting a seemingly ordinary process, without a grand opening or closing. This is a process where chaos fills the space between the start and the end. The same goes with our life, in which we often feel bewildered. Yet when all is said and done, the sun will still rise and set as always.
Before their journey ended at the landfill, the disposable products were once beneficial and convenient to our life. What I tried to explore in the early phase of creation were the man-made waste and harm and their role as a sacrifice for human existence. Our pursuit of convenience often results in mess and chaos – are we sacrificing our future for the sake of our existence today?
From the meaning of sacrifice I moved on to explore the meaning of vain. Deduction and void became vital to the creation of The End of Journey. I constantly considered what could be subtracted during the development. Resisting indulgence or multiplication, I was cautious about every step, distance and breath. I tried to remove anything heavy to form a light structure. The fragments as a result of de-contextualization become part of the structure, an interrupted continuity.
Premiere: Jun. 15, 2018 at Experimental Theater, Taipei. Commissioned by the National Performing Arts Center – National Theater & Concert Hall, Taiwan.
Credit:
Choreography and Sound Design:Yen-Cheng LIU | Performance:Yen-Cheng LIU and Hsiao-Tzu TIEN | Dramaturge:Ming-Chen LEE | Lighting Design:Ting-Tsung HO | Costume Design:Eno LIN
Nominator for Taishin Arts Award:
''a concise choreography, with every phrase aiming to the point...''Xiang-Jun Fan, Award Nominator:
“A concise choreography, with every phrase aiming to the point. It expresses the choreographer’s thinking about life… In the end, the unflavored movements are like garbage, nothing but a vain effort. To confront the unpleasant reality he perceives, he has two dancers dancing nonchalantly on top of stacked wooden pallets, till the very end.”
ARTALKS:
''discover the hidden possibilities existing amid the crack of the binary system...''POORMAN, Critic for ARTALKS:
“Yen-Cheng Liu attempts to discover the hidden possibilities existing amid the crack of the binary system. Between the useful waste and useless waste; between the valuable sacrifice and valueless sacrifice … between the back and forth movement of dancers … we sense the inspiration sparked at the desperate end of one’s means, and the absurdity of life revealed by bizarre movements.”