After a short period of pandemic early this year, life in Taiwan almost went back to normal in springtime. Since the end of March, performing arts activities (including the circus) have had a full capacity of audience. Artists and companies were able to present what they’ve been preparing for a long time in ideal conditions. The outbreak of the epidemic in mid-May put Taiwan back into the experience of the most intense prevention measures since 2020. It was almost like experiencing what other parts of the world had last year, with all public gatherings and art exhibitions canceled, venues closed, and eating in restaurants no longer available. After Covid hit, online shows seemed to be the main channel for performances.

Apart from the urgent relief package subsidy, the Taiwan Ministry of Culture soon put a series of performances produced by leading companies in the past into the “Arts Fun Theatre” project. Broadcasting for free on a Youtube channel, this project ran for 8 weekends with 94 shows by 47 companies throughout July and August. Though each performance video could not be replayed, it still attracted lots of people to join the streaming. Following this project, the Ministry of Culture also announced a new funding project: “Arts Fun Theatre – Online Stage” at the end of July which will be executed by the National Theatre and Concert Hall in Taipei, encouraging companies to provide ticket-selling online performances starting from November of 2021 rather than endless free shows. The selected companies will be subsidized from 400 thousand to 1.5 million TWD alongside the income they earn from the box office revenue. National Kaohsiung Centre for th...