Budaixi as communication

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performative art, it can expression traditional elements while incorporating fresh ideas and trends.

These improvised opportunities allow the puppeteers to include “little local flavors that have always made performances more interesting and edgy.” (Siebert) As a representative of Taiwan, Budaixi communicates the story of Taiwan to the world.

3.2 Budaixi as communication

Communication is a core function of cultural diplomacy, creating dialogues between states and between their corresponding populace. Information conveyed to audiences can focus on

Taiwanese culture, history and traditions as well as its political circumstances. Communicating the plight of Taiwan to a larger global audience can help increase the number of people invested in the country’s political struggles and future. “With dialogue you can attract attention.” (Lu) Developing mutual understanding between nations can lead to improved bilateral relations which in turn fosters mutually beneficial alliances and long lasting relationships. The number of official diplomatic ties to Taiwan has decreased in response to China’s charm offensive. As an isolated country “mutual understanding is a top priority” for Taiwan that can provide “concrete

improvement in bilateral relations.” (Lu)

Even as the world becomes more technologically advanced, cultures and countries still need to communicate with each other. As they come into contact with each other there is potential for relationships to develop. Cultural diplomacy creates space for communication that encourages these relations to grow. “I believe with mutual understanding, in the age of international cooperation and globalization, that there is no other way.” (Lu) Encouraging peoples from different countries to communicate educates those involved. “In my own opinion, I think people are one of the best means of promotion, no matter what it is they are promoting.” (Niitsu-Santo) By promoting culture, specifically puppet culture, Taiwan can use its popular culture as soft power to educate audiences through entertainment. Scholar John Street contends that the “very definition of popular culture is political.” (Street, p. 302) Popular culture is political because it expresses beliefs and values, both of which have political elements. Popular culture emphasizes particular aspects of culture and the state legitimizes this culture by endorsing different aspects of it. Consumption of popular culture can spread a political message to a wider audience. It is an effective tool of cultural diplomacy because it stimulates the recipients’ emotions and thoughts

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while simultaneously providing pleasure. The popular culture of music, plays, and comedies all communicate politics through their expression. Popular culture has the ability to give validation and to legitimize “forms of cultural activity” by incorporating elements of the activity into its own form. (Street, p. 307)

Ambassador Lu’s short puppet plays served as a literal representation of the bilateral relationship between France and Taiwan. By giving Taiwanese puppets French voices he combined two cultures into a hybrid performance. Lu felt that his combination of playing with Taiwanese puppets while speaking in French was the essential factor in his puppet shows. “The puppets are made in Taiwan and by starting such a dialogue in French you attract all the attention. This is the synergy of all our communication.” (Lu) His shows communicated information about Taiwan’s culture through the French dialogue and represented Taiwan through the puppets themselves as they were fashioned in the traditional Budaixi style. They also created an association between the diplomat and Taiwanese glove puppetry. Not only were audiences forming associations between Lu and puppets, they were becoming familiarized with Taiwanese culture. The Ambassador’s puppet shows created mutual understanding and dialogues about Taiwan overseas.

The Center for Puppetry Arts (CPA) in Atlanta is a “unique cultural treasure…where children and adults are educated, enlightened and entertained.” (Center for Puppetry Arts) They hold workshops, performances and have a museum featuring an extensive Muppet collection from American puppet pioneer Jim Henson. The CPA expanded their museum in 2015 to include a global puppetry gallery. This expansion was added because the CPA has a particular interest in

“sharing the traditional art forms of other cultures.” (Haverty) By sharing these art forms, visitors gain a greater understanding of the cultures featured. Puppetry communicates its cultural history and societal beliefs to audiences.

“One reason I particularly like about puppetry, is that it can so beautifully bring to life a culture. Walking through our museum, there are so many universal themes, and yet the particular way that these themes are expressed is culturally unique to the time and place in which the work was created. The Chen Hsi Huang Troupe’s

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work is also interesting in that Mr. Hsi-Huang Chen has learned the craft from a long lineage of masters so his work is both of the present and the past.” (Haverty)

Puppets educate by communicating culture through performance; when activated they embody multiple meanings of the heritage that created them. “They are embodying deities, sacred energies, ritual, community continuity, life or death and the future.” (Siebert) When puppet cultures from different countries work together, the similarities of culture can come into stark relief. The TAPTM’s theater piece Monkey Kings highlighted similarities between Taiwanese and Thailand culture by showcasing how the monkey legends played an important role in the heritage of both countries. (Taiyuan Asian Puppet Theatre Museum) The production was government financed and was part of the Exhibition of Cultural Creative Industries of Taiwan and Thailand. The production premiered at the Nantou based exhibition in 2008. Monkey Kings highlighted the Thailand legends of the Hindu monkey god Hanuman and the Chinese monkey king Sun Wukong. The TAPTM incorporated puppetrs from both Taiwan and Thailand for the performance. By illustrating how both countries have legends concerning monkeys, the

production created an opportunity to educate audiences about the mutual characteristics of both cultures’ beliefs and traditions.

Joseph Nye emphasized the power of story and asserted that importance was increasing in the information age. “Politics has become a contest of competitive credibility.” (Nye, p. 104) A country’s narratives are their soft power to win such a contest with credible stories. GooDoo creates original storylines based on historical events in Taiwan, performing in Taiwanese with Chinese and English subtitles. The troupe teaches its audience about Taiwanese history and culture through entertainment. As GooDoo Puppet Troupe brings Taiwanese puppetry to the world stage, it has the potential to affect a much larger pool of opinions and attitudes concerning Taiwan. They traveled to Thailand in 2015 and performed in Japan in 2017. September 2018 saw the troupe’s return to Japan to perform Taiwan's Legend: Ripple Of War in Tokyo. The troupe hopes to travel to the United States in the near future. Chang explains why their shows are popular with foreign audiences, “Puppets are relatable and entertaining. They show people the similarities between cultures and make cross-cultural connections.” (Huffman) Their play Mystery of The Great Mind Ocean communicated Taiwan’s history as a Dutch colony. It also

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expressed the struggles of Aboriginals under colonization. Taiwan's Legend: Ripple Of War communicates the history of Tainan to audiences while delivering an entertaining puppet show.

Taiwan’s culture interacts with the global community and encourages communication. “Each year the richness of Taiwan’s culture helped a lot to communicate with the international community.” (Lu) Tailoring puppet shows to include a more global sensibility is one method Taiwan has increased communication with foreign audiences. Traditional Pili shows have complicated storylines told in an episodic manner, and this can make it difficult to attract new viewers. Taipei based NPY Studio streamlined their puppet show Underworld Rangers by reducing the number of featured characters and writing more direct plotlines. Founder Lin Zi-yang explains, “Our stories are more simple to reach a wider audience.” (Huffman) In addition, seasons have fewer number of episodes and are released in batches to encourage longer viewing, similar to the strategy of streaming service Netflix. A significant change is Lin’s decision to have the puppet characters speak Chinese instead of the traditional Taiwanese. Subtitles are provided in traditional Chinese and English. These decisions were made in hopes of attracting a larger global audience. Stylistically the show is designed to reflect Ming Dynasty aesthetics. However, the dialogue is peppered with modern references such as ordering a book off Amazon.com, further broadening the appeal of the show.

It is imperative that Taiwan find strategic and efficient ways to communicate with not only the leaders of other countries but to their people as well. Diplomacy is not only about building relationships. With mutual understanding and communication, countries engage in

“communicating our points of view; correcting misconceptions; looking for areas where we can find common cause.” (Leonard, p. 9) Through communication, Taiwan can express its point of view on its own identity, its struggles for self-determination and its desire to be viewed as a peer with other nations. “If we want to survive we should be strong enough to communicate that Taiwan is a qualified partner of the international community.” (Lu) Positive and productive communication between nations reflects the positive effects of cultural diplomacy. “Diplomacy means there is no fear between two cultures.” (Lu) Communication can dispel fears and replace them with knowledge and trust. Increased communication can lead to cross-cultural

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collaborations that can foster long lasting relationships. Through communication, Budaixi helps forge connections between Taiwan and other countries.

Museums foster communication by presenting culture but also by conserving it. Conservation work can lead to import conversations and collaborations both in the present and the future. “By conserving heritage I would be able to support a new generation of debate, discussion and contextualizing.” (Siebert) Museums and international traveling exhibitions can expose

audiences to new cultures and new ideas. This form of cultural diplomacy is especially beneficial for Taiwan whose hard power is constricted. Investing in ITEs is an investment for future

diplomacy. “What a conservator is doing is they are preserving an object so that there will be many multigenerational discussions about that object.” (Siebert) Collaborations of these sorts can benefit countries and “for Taiwan they are very important.” (Siebert)

ITEs allow heritage to become mobile and increases communication and connection to a larger global stage. The value of these connections have benefited Taiwan and served as a form of cultural diplomacy. Museums function as a form of cultural diplomacy because they are

representing and communicating numerous cultures to their populace. “If you are doing a good job of representation you would be including the community in the formulation of your

exhibitions and content if at all possible.” (Siebert) By identifying the museum's context in the culture on exhibition, the relations between participating museums and their associated countries are also explored. “Like a bridge, ITEs connect museums and facilitate links between them across national borders.” (Lai, p. 91) History, culture and art can be explored through ITEs, creating new bridges that strengthen relationships and connections.