¡i Organization of the Troupe ¡j


Why it is called Huang Ta Yu
Kid's Troupe¡H

This must be the question of anyone who first heard the name. We found from background data that it was an abridged from ¡§Ta Chi Zuo Yu¡¨ (Wiseman seems like a fool). It was said that it is the pen name of Master Huang Chun-Ming. But the answer from Master Huang Chun-Ming is that children are good in remembering animal name, and tiger may become old as old tiger, dog may get older and be called as old dog, but people call fish as big fish or small fish, and no one call a fish as old fish. So Huang Ta Yu (Huang Big Fish) is given to the troupe.

The kid¡¦s troupe was inspired from the experience of Master Huang Chun-Ming. He has been doing advertisement for Adidas and the outcome was very good. Later, a company producing Nike footwear invited him to be assistant general manager in a plant located in Doulio. The plant employed more than 600 workers and most of them are female. Nike shoes are sold at high price and it takes highly skilled worker to make such shoe and it takes heavy investment in time and money to train skilled worker, which in turn would subject them to be solicited by other shoe plants. In order to prevent such occurrence, Master Huang suggested to establishing a baby care or kindergarten in the plant to keep workers. Later, a foundation was established to support it. Later, a kindergarten located in Taipei call Cheng Chang Kindergarten planned to suspend operation, so Master Huang bought it with the funds of the foundation and soon a Shoe Kid¡¦s Troupe was established. At that time, the troupe easily recruited many members. Since it is well budgeted, it became famous in Taipei very soon. Later when Master Huang returned to Yilan, he renamed the troupe as Huang Ta Yu Kid¡¦s Troupe.

Huang Ta Yu Kid¡¦s Troupe was removed to Yilan in 2002, which is a response to a call of rooting drama in Yilan, and it actively nurture drama talents in Yilan. Granny, the producer, said that ¡§Master Huang doesn¡¦t believe in big cast and he likes to uncover from new comers. It is quite possible for any actor to be performing in National Theater. He is good at uncover potential of actors.

¡@¡@¡§Kid¡¦s Play of Huang Chun-Ming¡¨ is bear good fame of depth and it is suitable for all age group and is touching heart of people. Huang Ta Yu Kid¡¦s Troup has the belief that as long as they produce good drama and bring it to kids, carry on for a period of time the population of watching and appreciating drama and arts will grow and the culture level of people in Lanyang will be elevated. So, in recent years, the troupe has been endeavoring in modifying quality drama of large stage into smaller scale suitable for campus tour in order to bring their play to each and every school children and to plant the beautiful inspiration in their minds.

Interviewing producer, Granny		  


¡]1¡^How long the troupe has established¡H

A: Established in 1994 the troupe was based in Taipei and was relocated to Yilan recently. The total length is about 13 years.

¡]2¡^How many members have Huang Ta Yu Kid¡¦s Troupe now¡H How do you administer them¡H

A: It could not be said for sure, but there are 19 regulars and others are recruited when a play is planning. There is basically no administration, but apply only during rehearsal or a union.

¡]3¡^Are the members rewarded or are they paying any fee¡H

A: Basically there is no reward. It cost a lot to deliver a play and sometime, the money solicited is insufficient to meet the ends. WE don¡¦t expect surplus and even if we have, we will have a party, dinner or lunch, or give a bit to grownup in the troupe. In principle, we don¡¦t give money to children. It is to make them know that they are not joining for money but to learn. There is no fee collected and there is no reward giving to members every time.

¡]4¡^How much would it cost for a show? How do you balance your expenditure?

A: The cost ranged from hundreds of thousand NTD to more than a million, so we have to solicit for funds. All the staff here is volunteers and they are not expecting any reward. By this way, the budget of the troupe can barely be met.

¡]5¡^What are the occupations of the actors?

A: Half of them are students. The rest are owner of cafe, some are housewives, teachers or retired teacher, or farmers. The actors are having jobs when they are not rehearsing or playing.

¡]6¡^What are the conditions of selection actors? How to join the troupe.¡H

A: There is no set condition and we recruit only if we have show to do. We post recruitment notice on billboard or web site and we choose from those responded to our recruitment

¡]7¡^What is the role of Master Huang Chun-Ming in the Troupe?

A: He is the responsible person, leader, chief screen writer and director and he is the most important arts superintendent. He plays a very important role.

¡]8¡^¼@How many plays in a year the troupe are playing generally¡H What are the placed you have been performing¡H

A: Generally, there is one main show, formal one, in a year. We have been performing in National Theater. We have been performing in National Theater, schools and performance halls round the island and many other places in Taiwan.

¡]9¡^What are the difficulties in running the troupe and how do you overcome them¡H

A: The problem encountered in operation of the troupe is mostly money problem, the funds is just not enough, which we could only try harder to solicit for support. Scheduling is another problem. We want to play in many other places and to present drama of Master Huang Chun-Ming to as many people as possible. But it may have to use school hours. So it is quite difficult to find time to tour more.

¡]10¡^What rule or requirement shall be complied in joining a troupe¡H

A: Since troupe is a group, there are certainly rules or regulations to follow. Fro example, one has to attend rehearsal in time and do as required on stage. These are very important.

¡]11¡^Is there anything interesting or highly impressive things during your performance or tour¡H

A: Once, there was a kid, believed that he could not play his role well and he cried to quit the performance. Everybody came over to comfort him, Finally, he successfully performed on stage. This is the most impressive thing.

¡]12¡^Is there any plan for future of troupe¡H

A: We hope that this troupe will cover all schools in Yilan County in next 5 years to present the drama of Huang Chun Ming to children in Yilan and we also hope to solicit more people to support the operation of the troupe and to pass down the culture to keep it from vanishing.