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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》Ko touts Chiang Wei-shui opera
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, left, yesterday listens to directions while shooting a commercial for a local opera portraying Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui. Photo: provided by Taipei City Government
INFLUENTIAL FIGURE: Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je said the upcoming shows will provide the public with an insight into an important era in Taiwanese history
By Sean Lin / Staff reporter
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je （柯文哲） has become the latest high-profile figure to accept the Yilan County Government’s invitation to help promote an upcoming Lanyan Opera Troupe Taiwanese opera about the life of Chiang Wei-shui （蔣渭水）, a luminary who helped shape Taiwanese democracy.
Ko — who has publicly called Chiang his hero on numerous occasions — appeared in a video to help promote the opera on Facebook.
Donning a bowler hat and an early 20th-century outfit worn by gentlemen across Chinese communities, Ko acted out a skit in which he played the role of a physician going to see the show.
Ko said that Golden Horse Award best supporting actress Lu Hsuei-feng （呂雪鳳） would assume Chiang’s role, and that he is excited to see how a woman portrays Chiang.
He said that unlike conventional Taiwanese operas, the upcoming shows will take a format akin to a stage show, and that it will also feature stunts.
Ko said that Chiang was an influential figure for Taiwanese democracy and culture and that the shows will provide people with an insight into an important era in Taiwanese history.
Ko invited members of the public to head to the Yilan Performance Hall on Dec. 19 and Dec. 20 to view the performances.
Chiang is widely acknowledged as one of the founding fathers of Taiwanese democracy for founding the influential anti-colonial organization, the Taiwan Cultureal Association （台灣文化協會）; the first modern political party, the Taiwan People’s Party （台灣民眾黨）; the first island-wide Taiwanese Federation of Workers’ Unions （台灣工友總聯盟）; and the newspaper the Taiwan Minpao （台灣民報）, which played a crucial role in promoting democracy and human rights, as well as new literature and arts, under Japanese rule.
Chiang was spied on by the Taiwan Governer-General’s Office until his death and arrested numerous times for his activism to fight for freedom of speech and a parliament comprising Taiwanese senators during the Japanese Colonial period.
Chiang’s funeral in 1931 became a demonstration, after more than 5,000 people turned up to attend the event, with the police closely monitoring them.
First buried in Taipei’s Liuzhangli Cemetary （六張犁公墓）, his body was moved back to his place of birth, Yilan, in October.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
