Fusing spiritual cultivation with artistic performance, U Theater has created many works rich in religious and spiritual connotations. Meeting Manjusri Bodhisattva tells the story of how the bodhisattva attained enlightenment. The Dandelion Sword is about a young martial arts expert who, after defeating countless rivals and fighting in any number of battles, finds that the most important battle he has yet to fight is with himself. Despite the different themes, the troupe's productions all have an inspiring, uplifting, and cathartic power that has earned it a faithful following as well as an international reputation. In addition to performing in Taiwan, the troupe has been invited to Holland, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, France, England, America, Hong Kong, Singapore, and various other countries. The company creates sensations wherever it goes, and its conspicuous achievements have led local media to acclaim it as "the pride of Taiwan."

U Theater was established in 1988 by Liu Ching-min, a famed Taiwanese stage actress. The troupe has undergone some great transformations over the years--from a group groping its way to one that is well recognized by its distinctive performance style. Liu, who might not have expected her group to become such a success, says that when she first founded U Theater, she did not have any concrete ideas about how their performances would be presented. "I set up the troupe simply because I wanted to grow up anew." It all started back two decades ago when she was studying performing arts in the United States.

A westernized Chinese

Liu had achieved a certain degree of fame early on. When she was in her early twenties, she was already a leading actress in a famous acting troupe in Taiwan. Devoted to acting, she thought she should advance her acting skills if she wanted to pursue a career in the field. Therefore, after graduating from the Department of Theater Arts at the Chinese Culture University in Taipei and working on stage for four years, she went to America to study drama at New York University. Two years later, she obtained an acting degree and was accepted for a one-year program conducted by Jerzy Grotowski (1934-1999), a theater director and theoretician who had an important influence on the development of modern theater. Under Grotowski's tutorship, Liu underwent a major awakening that induced her to look anew at herself and led her to the establishment of U Theater.

One day, after seeing Liu perform, Grotowski said to her, "Judging from the way you present your performances, you are a westernized Chinese." Grotowski did not explain further, but Liu could sense negative connotations in his statement. It was quite a shock to her. "I've lived in the world for nearly 30 years, and yet I've never seriously thought about my cultural background or my origin. When did I start becoming westernized?"

Her teacher's comment prompted the young performer to reflect on her past and on the way she had been brought up. Her father was a soldier who had retreated to Taiwan with the Nationalist army after mainland China fell into the hands of the Communists. Having grown up in the closed world of a military residential compound, Liu did not have many chances to get in touch with local culture. Whereas local Taiwanese people would take their children to attend temple fairs, traditional festival celebrations, or ritual ceremonies, she could not remember ever going to one.

Feeling that there was something lacking inside her, she decided to look for it in her homeland and try to "grow up" again. When she established U Theater in 1988, she told the young people who joined the troupe, "When we grew up back then, many of us were alienated from nature, from our own tradition and culture. I don't want you to be like me when you're my age. So let's try to grow up together."

The troupe gradually traveled all around Taiwan to explore and get in touch with local culture. They studied various traditional Taiwanese folk and performing arts including pachiachiang (ceremonial striding), cheku (drumming parades), peikuan (a kind of traditional music), stilt walking, Taiwanese opera, and others. "At that time, whenever we learned that traditional rites or ceremonies were going to be held in some place, we'd rush over there to observe and learn." From her research and learning during this period, Liu created several scripts including The Death of Chungkuei (a deity who allegedly protects human beings from evil spirits), in which she tried to incorporate traditional performance elements. Songs and dance that created a ritual ambience were important components of her early works.

"During the first five years, we explored and absorbed things in every possible way," said Liu. "I never knew Taiwan was so rich in culture." At first, she was anxious to imbue the troupe with an oriental spirit, but later she found that it was not something that could be rushed. It all took time to build. So she learned and experimented as much as possible with her troupe members in search of a unique performance style for U Theater.

The joining of another key member

The year 1993 marked a turning point for U Theater. Huang Chih-wen, a drumming master, was invited to join the group to be its drumming director. He has been practicing traditional lion drumming and martial arts since he was nine. Once a member of the prestigious Cloud Gate Dance Theater in Taiwan, he has a great deal of experience performing both in Taiwan and abroad.

When he joined U Theater, he had just returned from an independent trip to India. He told Liu, "Let the group members learn meditation before I teach them drumming." From this time onwards, the members began lessons in meditation. It was also at this time that the troupe created its trademark sacred drumming derived from traditional lion drumming. Huang's membership thus instilled new life into the troupe.

When asked why he suggested that the group should learn meditation before learning drumming, Huang related an encounter he had had while traveling in India. During his trip, he met a meditation master in a small tavern near the Ganges River. The two of them struck up a conversation. The master asked him, "Have you ever tried meditation?" Huang, who had long had the habit of meditating, said yes. The master then asked him how he did his meditation. After Huang described it, the master pointed to a candy jar on the table and said, "You only see the candy jar. You do not get to eat the candy inside." The master then asked him if he cared to go to Bodhgaya, the place where the Buddha attained enlightenment, with him to learn meditation. Huang suddenly had a strange feeling that he could not describe. Enchanted, he nodded his head.

At Huang's first meditation lesson, the master taught him a very important idea: "To meditate is to live in the moment 24 hours a day." Huang felt as if he had been jolted awake by a blow. The master went on to say, "Look, it is such a beautiful morning! The sunshine is splendid. The wind gently brushes against our faces. But you don't even hear the birds chirping." The master's words greatly touched Huang. He knew well that he rarely lived in the moment. He had always allowed his past problems and future concerns to dominate the present moment, making him feel anxious, depressed, and frustrated. No wonder he would miss things as wonderful as the songs of birds.

After that encounter, Huang meditated every day according to the master's instructions. "During the first three months, it was really hard. I kept practicing living in the moment as my master taught me, but I was constantly distracted by my thoughts. I had to bring my attention back to the present all the time."' When drinking water, he would concentrate on savoring the warmth and sweetness of it; when walking, he would pay attention to every step he took. When yesterday's problems began to trouble him, he would immediately bring his attention back to the here and now. Over time, he began to feel a difference. He could feel his mind begin to clear and his heart also became more peaceful.

Huang had only planned to stay in India for one month, but after that fortuitous encounter, he decided to extend his visit to six months because he knew he had reached a critical point in his life. When he finally returned from India to Taiwan half a year later, he felt like a different man. He knew he had found a way to emancipate and purify his mind. He even became more unattached to the most important thing in his life. "Drumming used to be such an important part of my life that I couldn't imagine living without it. But now I feel that as long as I'm alive, I can do anything--I don't even have to play the drums."

Having experienced what he did, Huang decided to teach the troupe members meditation before instructing them in drumming. Liu, who later became his wife, completely agreed with him. She says that since meditation helps one to quiet one's thoughts, it is good training for the performers, who have to fully concentrate if they want to reach a certain level of perfection in their performances.

Liu says she herself has benefited a lot from meditation. One time, when they were meditating in the mountains, she could sense a caterpillar crawling toward her. She automatically flicked it away. When she looked down from the rock where she sat, she found that the caterpillar had fallen into a bottomless abyss. Her heart quaked. "Why am I so violent?" The experience taught her that most of the time we live in our own world and are trapped in our self-centered thinking. Meditation helped her to reflect on herself more honestly and to achieve inner peace.

A unique performing troupe

Early every morning, the members of U Theater assemble at their headquarters in the Taipei suburb of Mucha. There in the mountains, they practice tai chi and other martial arts, play drum, rehearse, and attend courses on the art of acting. Most importantly, they do meditation, which helps them to gather an inner force, a liberated state of mind. In addition to the daily training program, they also regularly hike around the island. The hikes are like pilgrimages to the group. Although hiking long distances is physically demanding, they deem it a good way not only to train their bodies, but also their minds. Usually, they don't hurry on their way, and they don't set expectations for themselves on how much distance they should cover. They just absorb the walking and feeling of their bodies' natural rhythms. When doing so, their minds become at peace. "Once when we were hiking," Liu remembered, "one of our members said to me, 'Why have the trees lining the side of the road suddenly become so green?' That was because his heart had reached a state of tranquility. Thus he was able to see things more distinctly."

The group's training, physical and spiritual, has greatly elevated the quality of their performances, which are marked by power, a positive energy that communicates itself to the audience. An elderly man in Hong Kong once mailed a cassette to Liu, in which he said that after seeing their performances he had decided to resume practicing the art of calligraphy, which he had given up years ago. "Although we did not expect such things to happen, they are what we hope to achieve through our art--to help people open their minds and to have confidence in themselves."

Clearly, U Theater has forged a path for themselves and made themselves one of the nation's, if not the world's, most noteworthy performance groups. In 2000, the U Theater Culture and Art Foundation was established. U Theater is no longer just a performing troupe, but a team that helps promote culture and art. The space in which they can develop is now even wider and more extensive. It is certain that they will continue to enrich Taiwanese culture and bring more wonderful performances to audiences worldwide.