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Ironically, I have often thought that the so called “general public” does not need the theatre. We are faced with the reality that in Taiwan, “art” interests only a small sector of the population. For example, Taiwan – or simply Taipei – cannot sustain American- or European-style repertory companies or a functioning performance art industry. The problem lies not just in the lack of audience or market but also in the cultural differences and the unfavorable overall environment for the art. Case in point: the central government is planning to build three national-level theatre venues in Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung respectively, but the proposals have already generated anxieties about the availability of programs and a lack of audience. Theatre companies unaffiliated with the government are naturally more sensitive to practical issues, as well as being more diligent and market-savvy in the execution of their projects; nonetheless the reality we are facing in the next ten years is a vicious cycle that has become all too familiar.
想想：票房不好，然後呢？
about our own lives and encourages us to take a hard look at ourselves, our values, and our behavior.” I doubt it is possible for Taiwan’s performance art community to exert such a wide-ranging influence on the society, and I do not attempt to define the relationship between art and the public. However, the next time when we bring up a question about the relationship between the audience and the theatre, whether from the perspective of the art administrator or the artist, we might want to begin by thinking about the metaphysical nature of performance art. What kind of theatre would make our lives better? Perhaps it should not be separated from practical considerations, and we need to ask ourselves how we can place theatrical art in a daily setting. Let’s ask ourselves this question and open up a broader, more effective discussion.
In his talk, “7 Reasons Why Theatre Makes Our Lives Better,” Howard Shalwitz, the artistic director at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, DC, discusses theatre’s influence of our time on the individual, the society, education, economy, culture and art. He concludes the talk by stating that “theatre influences the way we think and feel 13