Taishin Bank Foundation for Arts and Culture

Comments on the Finalist 

Embarking on a Drift to the Unknown combines monologue with carefully woven soundscapes to explore memories of matrilineal transoceanic migration through a theatrical design centered on the auditory experience. The performance emphasizes sonic resonances, spatial cues, and headphone listening, transforming sound into a symbolic system that captures the fluid flow of time and emotional shifts, producing both immediate situations and historical echoes. It turns the most subtle parts of personal memories into immediately perceivable signals. This approach, similar to an adaptive receiver, uses theatrical vocabulary built from sound to challenge reliance on representations of the visible in traditional theater, offering new perspectives for engaging with the work while redefining the idea of presence within the sensory experience. (Commentator / CHANG Yin-Fang)

Artwork Introduction  

Embarking on a Drift to the Unknown draws on the life story of a woman who journeyed from Guangdong to Southeast Asia. Narrated as a monologue by her granddaughter, Genn LAU, and the creative collective, the work recounts family memories of the woman boarding a ship alone and being compelled into marriage abroad. It introduces “Zi-Wei-Dou-Shu,” a Chinese cultural system rooted in specific philosophies of fate and life, transforming this numerology into a cultural framework for exploring the link between personal destiny and historical eras. The performance uses real-time sound, physical movement, and imagery to create an immersive theatrical experience, guiding audiences through a multigenerational voyage of memory. By viewing the trajectories of individual lives through contemporary perspectives, it reexamines the connection between Chinese women’s migration experiences and collective Asian memory.

About the Artist 

Antinomy Company is an adaptable, multimodal artistic collective. Rooted in the principles of “multiple forms, multiple participation, and multiple care,” their practice emphasizes the interconnection among the body, memory, and site. Their artistic expressions include theater, performance, sound, and installation, and they continually examine the tension between the inner self and the external environment. With a longstanding focus on “Asian collective memory,” they push boundaries through “inclusive theatre” and “site-specific” projects, aiming to create artistic experiences informed by publicness and diversity.

Production Team

Director, Concept, Sound and Music｜LI Yun

Documentary Material｜Genn LAU

Text｜LI Yun

Performer｜Genn LAU

Stage Manager｜HUANG Yung-chih

Stage Designer｜LIN Jhao-an

Lighting Designer｜CHIEN Fang-yu

Movement Designer｜YANG Yue

Graphic Designer｜LI Yun

Video Designer｜LI Yun

Sound Engineer｜WEN Cheng-han

Lighting Technician｜CHEHG Chu-hsin, WU Kuan-hsuan, LI Chia-yi

Stage Technician｜WANG Yi-hung

Producer｜YANG Yue

Production Assistant｜CHU Man-ning