Hsiu Chiu Puppet Theater Introduction
"Xiujiu Puppet Theater" (established in 1992) is the first puppet-themed restaurant in Taiwan. For 30 years, its "Taiwan Puppet Feast" has attracted various international tour groups to first come to the capital and enjoy Taiwanese literature while savoring traditional Taiwanese cuisine, beginning their joyful journey on the treasure island. The public sector often arranges for distinguished guests and dignitaries from various countries to watch performances, with the President of Palau (then serving as a senator) and the President of Nauru having visited twice (during the pandemic to host foreign guests in a travel bubble). In 2013, the American TLC reported it as one of the "World's Strange Restaurants." "Xiujiu Puppet Theater" has a traditional puppet troupe of the same name, utilizing a variety of Taiwanese puppetry styles, including hand puppetry, golden light puppetry, TV cosplay, and indigenous puppets depending on the performance, characterized by "local, comprehensible, and joyful" presentation. In addition to being performed in Taiwanese, it also offers a rare opportunity to be performed entirely in English, adopting an interactive performance style that allows people from various backgrounds and ages to understand, play, perform on stage, and enjoy laughter, bridging the gap between Taiwan's traditional arts and international audiences. The troupe has continuously received invitations to perform domestically and abroad over the years, having traveled to Mainland China, Japan (for the 2014 National Palace Museum's national treasure exhibition and National Day reception), South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia multiple times (including promoting the Universiade in Kuala Lumpur with Mayor Ko in 2017), Australia, the Netherlands, and Germany (Berlin ITB) at international travel expos, and the 2022 ITF "Ministry of Culture" pavilion performance (promoting stories that won the championship in the "Folklore Techniques" category at the 2022 Chunghwa Telecom "Stories of Taiwan" competition). (Source: Xiujiu Puppet Theater)
