Introduction

In the previous episode, we told you how these three rather stunning neo-classical Chinese buildings came to exist. This week, we’re looking at them through a “culture and society” lens. The massive statue of Chiang Kai-shek remains on its pedestal at the CKS Memorial Hall. A place built to venerate a dictator, however, became the site of the Wild Lily protests demanding a democratic Taiwan in 1990, the year after tanks answered calls for freedom in a square in Beijing. We’ll look at what the National Theater and Concert Hall (NTCH) offers visitors, and finally, how do you bring a “traditional Chinese” theater and concert hall (both inspired by buildings in China’s medieval Forbidden City) into the 21st century?

Pics and links at formosafiles.com