NK101 AWESOMENESS!!!!!!!

Wednesday January 9^th, 2013

Dude! Forget about high school! Let me jump straight to my night! Oh my good sweet Lordie it was AWESOME! You’ll find out why in just a bit. ;D

Before the REALLY EXCITING event was a REALLY DECILICOUS home meal cooked as usual by host grandma. It comprised of two main dishes with a few sides. First was to put rice in your bowl (as usual) and drizzle a saucy soup with potato and carrot chunks on top. I’m pretty sure it was curry but without any added spice. It tasted more sweet if anything. The sauce blended splendidly well with the rice to create a lovely combination for the taste buds. Yep, pretty darn sure it was curry. ;) The second part of dinner was a hot pot. Now this hot pot was different from others I’ve shown you. This one was much simpler and shared between the family rather than for individuals. The various bits of food placed inside included veggies and things along the lines of fish balls or whatever they’re called. The point is it was all very wonderful and satisfying. Throw in a few slices of guava for dessert and the meal is complete! ^_^

Remember how last week I mentioned there was a schedule conflict between going to Tamsui and a surprise play booking my family did? Well that booking moved from last Friday to Wednesday (a.k.a. this very day). I went into this thing thinking it was a drama or opera. I came out corrected and mind-blown! Would you like me to tell all about it?... I can’t hear you! Come on, get excited! Lemme hear you, ARE YOU READY?! :D

Great! Then let’s begin! This performance was held at a place called NK 101. On the pamphlet it said “Formosa Fantasy, The amazing night of Taiwan.” No lie to that title! Inside the building it had a large open area. In the front was the stage and the rest of the floor was either unoccupied or had tables that fit four people for the audience. Apart from a spacious plus sign shape that was kept open, the tables filled the remaining area. That open space was for the actors to come off the stage and get up close with the viewers, sometimes even getting onlookers involved!

First a big, happy, colorful guy mascot person (you’ll see a photo later) came out and explained what to do in case of an emergency. You know, where the exits are, how to act and all that jazz. After that little doo-hicky, the real show began! It started with a girl pulsating a gong and a drummer banging away at a huge, traditional vertical drum. Soon some really lengthy horns in the back chimed in. Even more instruments probably joined but I didn’t notice after a figure appeared and captured my attention.

Well hellooooo. Who are you? What are you doing here? Can I hug you? ^_^ This dude came out slowly yet his every moment had power. In his left hand is a flag and his right is holding a whole cluster of incense sticks used to pray to the gods. Usually people take only about three or so of those sticks when praying. This guy had over a hundred! Clouds of smoke followed in his right hand’s movement trails because he had so many sticks. I don’t know if you can see or not but on the right half of his chest there are a bunch of black markings like tattoos that extended up onto his arm. And yes, the dude is super ripped just in case you didn’t notice already. XD As he gradually made his way from the back of the room towards the stage, he performed bits of kung-fu and praying actions. The meaning behind it was praying an invitation to the gods for them to come.

These divine beings are more correctly labeled as officers and not gods. Their Chinese name is八家將 (Bā jiā jiāng). Now it took me over a week (after the show. Yes I’m writing in the future :P) to get a grasp on the basis and meaning of these cultural figures so here’s my best attempt at explaining it.

Picture reference first! (Not mine! I got it from their official website.)

On the advertisement pamphlet given out it says, “The Head of Infernal Generals and the Eight Infernal Generals represent the positive power of warding off evils. They are also responsible for protecting the main divine.” Research I’ve done on various websites have jumbled things up because none of them are the same thing. There’s no set history or origin behind these figures so it makes things a wee bit confusing…yet all the more interesting!

First off these peeps are not Chinese. Nope, nopedy nope they are not. They solely originate from Taiwan. Secret culture score! That’s awesome that I can learn something special just to Taiwan and not just Chinese related countries. It pokes at my curiosity. ;D

Some say the Infernal Generals were related to the “Five Deities of Plague Control” that sacrificed themselves to protect local residents from a poisoned well. The Jade Emperor acknowledged their deed and designating them the “Five Deities of Plague Control.” Another tale says they were bandits before being forced to turn over a new leaf and become religious figures. They have also been said to be ancient policemen who are now worshipped as ambassadors from the underworld.

Though the tales originally told of eight members, different stories have inconsistent numbers varying from 4, 6, 8, 10 or even 12 figures. The original had eight members of the Infernal Generals, including Gan, Liou, Fan, and Hsieh as the four generals and Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter as four seasonal gods.

Tada! That’s your history lesson for the day! I could go on but I’ll spare you. ;D In a nutshell, this part of the show really, REALLY wowed me! I was totally fascinated! The character designs, their movements, the personality radiating off of them, all were so captivating! I really loved it!

These were what I guess the “Head of the Infernal Generals,” five in total. Three were strapped on wires that did cool choreography up and down a slanted white ground. The two on the bottom weren’t strapped but still joined in the dance. In this part of the show, they weren’t in their full garments because they had to remove their shirts/robes in order to do the wired section. Their full outfits are really amazing though and very majestic. You’ll see one later! ;) My absolute favorite guys are the far left red one and the middle one who I think was the leader.

Another shot of the wire section but with some of the other Infernal Generals located at the bottom. What I’ve concluded (which took a long confusing time to do) is that all of them are Infernal Generals but the main five from the last picture are the leaders. That doesn’t quite fit into the history that I’ve found but I’m pretty sure that’s what NK101’s take on it is.

The other part of the religious section was this chica (not my picture). Her name is roughly pronounced “ma zhu.” She’s the equivalent of Mother Nature. “The Goddess of Hope resembles the Mother of the Earth who blesses and protects all beings.” My host father said she is known to protect fishermen when out at sea. This chica is very much liked in Taiwan.

That was the first part of the performance out of four. The sections are as follows (in order):

-Wu Shen Jiang - Dance of the Sacred Officers

-The Nankang Night Market

-Let’s Dance (a.k.a. modern dance)

-Aboriginal Dance

So what I just described was the religious part of the night with the fascinating yummy Infernal Generals. Up next, a complete flip of the Taiwanese culture with its extreme modern side.

So the Nankang Night Market part of the show! Comedy, tricks and culture were all aspects. Some characters included, clothing salesmen, bubble milk tea makers, a fortuneteller, herbal medicine doctor and some…chicas. These girls wore really outgoing costumes and lit up with LED lights. Then there was a pole dancer all in black among their group that took a male member of the audience and did a diddly-do-da dance together with lit up balls in each hand. It’s cool how they incorporated the audience. The fortuneteller was great because he contact juggled with crystal balls for a bit. Pretty cool!

I don’t own this picture! Here’s the Nankang Night Market crew. See those two rainbow light thingies in the back? You see those EVERYWHERE in Taipei. They flicker and flash different colors and patterns in order to attract your attention so it works as an advertisement for usually small, privately owned shops or restaurants.

From left to right, outgoingly dressed chica, herbal doctor and MC/comedy narrator. Many girls were dressed in the same pink outfit with the torso straps and headband having the LED lights. Of course the lights were turned off for a bit to see them lit up. The red shirt, gray haired medicine guy was my favorite character out of the night market. His personality was based around being able to do anything with the intake of the correct herbs. It was cute. ;)

The modern dance section was basically a slice of beat-boxing followed by LED Michael Jackson. “Taiwan has been shaking off its conservative tradition to catch up with international trend and to create its own style. Luminescence is used to present Taiwan’s originality.” These following pictures are not mine, just to clarify.

After a beat-boxing guy, a UFO glided above the audience from the back to the front of the room. While this was happening, two military dressed guys came in with guns (fake ones probably). Then a Michael Jackson impersonator beams down from the UFO. Once down, the gun guys go away. Um…what was the purpose of those guys? I can’t figure it out. XD

With one white clad Michael Jackson being contrasted by a large crew of red and black, the dancing/singing began. All Jackson songs of course. Don’t ask me if it was the same choreography because I have no idea. Never watched his (the real ones) performances. When lights went out and the LED aspect kicked in, the back up crew was glowing in green while Jackson was in blue. There was some pretty darn unique use of LED effects incorporated with the dancing. It was impressive!

The fourth and final segment was featuring Taiwanese aboriginal culture! Oh man it was so splendid! “There are 15 precious cultures from long-standing tribes in Taiwan. Though from different tribes and areas, they share one thing in common: Their respect to the nature; their pursuit for freedom; and their love for life.” It was also mentioned how they “praise beautiful love stories.” One was performed between a woman and man both doing acrobatics in the air with two really long pieces of cloth hanging from the ceiling for each. Just like in the circus!

They also had several dances with drums, fancy pole footwork and more. The best part was when the actors jumped off stage and ran among the audience, grabbing people to come and join them. They taught their victims a simple dance of holding hands and uncomplicated footwork that led everyone up on stage. Soon the long line of both audience members and actors were forming a circle around a cluster of performers. These people were doing acrobatics that looked similar to the tossing of cheerleaders up in the air. In the meantime, the circle of people would pulse forward and back with a slight jump when coming inward. Afterwards, the happy victims were guided off the stage and back to their seats.

Want to know the real kicker? One of those captured spectators…was me. OH HOLY GOODNESS IT WAS AWESOME! A girl came up and grabbed my hand and led me to two guy actors that were…um…cute. (Don’t kill me Dad! :P) I caught on real fast to the movements but the adorable attempts from the guy to speak English were loveable! All through the dancing a huge smile stretching across my face could be seen shining with delight. I really had a ton of fun doing an aboriginal dance. What can I say, dancing is my thing! XD

Soon after the whole crew came out for the final applause, bowing and recognition. The previous two pictures are once again not mine, but now all of the following ones are.

The actors recycle their roles because I recognize some aboriginal dressed people as the night market peeps and I’m sure some Infernal Generals changed costumes as well since all but one didn’t appear during the credits. Here you see the Michael Jackson impersonator, the MC comedian, the Taiwanese aboriginals and the mascot guy I mentioned in the beginning. That’s what he looks like.

This is what I assume to be the Leader of the Head of Infernal Generals. Part of their character is to swish their head from side to side in a very powerful, intimidating manner. It looked so cool when his headpiece whooshed to and fro! And if you look closely, you can see two white fangs protruding from his mouth. This combined with his face paint and daunting manner is how all actors for the Infernal Generals should act. Once they apply their face paint they have to keep this kind of attitude. Here’s a paragraph taken from a website that better describes it:

“Once the make-up has been applied, actors playing the Infernal Generals are not allowed to eat meat or to talk to anyone. According to ceremonial rules, any actor who breaks this rule is subject to punishment from the gods. When show time arrives, the actors all stand in an array to mark the beginning of the performance. The actors shake their heads, stare with their eyes and swing their bodies wildly as they walk, maintaining a respectable and powerful attitude throughout the whole process. In addition, the Infernal Generals cannot allow anyone other than crewmembers to get close to them, which is another way they command respect from those around them.”

I find that FASCINATING! :D

Closer shot of the comedian MC and mascot thingie. But I want to point out the guy between them. That was one of the dears next to me for the aboriginal dance.

And I believe the other dear is the third person from the left. Both the dudes were friendly, helpful and cutie patooties. :P Oh yeah and there’s the Michael Jackson impersonator. His face looks so timid.

So the show ended but the experience was not quite over. Several actors went to the front door for pictures with peeps. Yay, happiness! :D

Mascot thingie…I felt the same way as its hands suggests. “Um…Huh?” XD

Chinese Mother Earth. Yes, her the hip part of the costume was actually that wide. Good luck getting through a doorway facing forward! XD

Michael Jackson impersonator and the beat-boxer. The beat-boxing was cool and so was his sliver hair. :P

I’m not going to lie, I got a crush on these Taiwanese culture figures. XD Too bad only one was available for pictures but hey, one is better than none! The whole time he stood there he didn’t speak nor smile. He only kept the powerful demeanor throughout. When I walked up, he stamped his spear down, threw it up and caught it in seen pose. Duuuude~ Awesome! A part of me wanted to hug him but trust me I knew better. That’s what the human imagination is for to make up with mind hugs. ;P

And just cuz they intrigue me so, here’s another shot of an Infernal General. You can better see his fangs, spear and back of costume. Also he is making the traditional Infernal General hand sign with his left hand. All fingers are upright while the ring finger is down. Sometimes I’ll do it with my own hands just for fun. :P

Last but not least are our beloved Taiwanese aboriginals! The guy to the immediate right of me was one of the dears during the dance. All of them showed such welcoming, pleasant attitudes during their performance that it made it a very memorable show. Love these guys!

And so concludes the Formosa Fantasy show at NK101. I loved, loved, loved it and definitely want to see it again! I can already tell tonight will fill my thoughts and dreams for quite a while afterwards. XD This may have seriously been my favorite night in Taiwan so far! I LOVED IT! LOVED IT I TELL YOU! :D

Good night everyone! Sweet dreams! (I know I will :P)