The Chiao Wan Jan Puppet Troupe from the Taipei Ping-Deng Elementary School visited San Francisco from August 11 to 18. The troupe was invited by San Francisco Public Library to give a performance there on August 15, where an audience of more than 200 Bay Area residents was deeply moved by the young puppeteers’ skills.

The Chiao Wan Jan Puppet Troupe is the oldest children’s hand puppet troupe in Taiwan. It was established in 1988 under the tutelage of Li Tien-Lu, a famous Taiwanese hand puppet master. Since then, many interested students at Ping-Deng Elementary School have joined the troupe and learned the traditional skills of puppeteering and playing the associated traditional musical instruments.

This summer, seven teachers accompanied 11 devoted and skilled students for their school’s first tour giving performances in the US. The puppet troupe presented four performances: at the San Francisco Public Library; at the International Folk Festival in Cupertino; at the Foster City Library; and at the San Jose Public Library. Their fabulous shows were well covered by both the print media and the Mandarin TV news.

Mr. Joseph Ma, director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office received the troupe on August 18. He praised these young performers for their enthusiasm and great efforts to learn Taiwan’s traditional arts, and he encouraged them to continue their roles as young cultural ambassadors in the international community.

(photo) The Chiao Wan Jan Puppet Troupe at TECO in San Francisco, with Joseph Ma, the director-general (4th left,) and Pauline Chen, director of the education division (far left).