2025臺北藝術節：李銘宸 X 張碁 X 奈絲．蘿柯 X 温又柔《旅行的舌頭》

是「埃斯捆立母」聽起來比較好吃？還是念冰淇淋更動聽？

「秋摳類斗」唸起來很可愛對吧，沒想到巧克力和鹹魚加在一起做成的燉飯這麼好吃⁽⁽٩(๑˃̶͈̀ ᗨ ˂̶͈́)۶⁾⁾

食物真是博大精深啊～～

需要踏上一場《旅行的舌頭》好好體驗！好好品味

《旅行的舌頭》自「流行群島」計畫開始釀造。

「流行群島」計畫為臺北藝術節2023年推出的駐節研究計畫，今年為第二屆，邀請日本京都藝術節（Kyoto Experiment）策展團隊擔任客席策展；該項目集結臺灣劇場導演李銘宸、作家温又柔、日本劇場導演張碁（Jang-Chi）和菲律賓藝術家奈絲．蘿柯（Ness Roque），他們以「食物」為主題進行研究和創作，深入思考食物如何乘載國家和地方身份，以及研究食物在不同文化背景下又是如何形成、轉化與交融。

食物是建構日常生活的重要元素

怎麼吃？吃什麼？似乎也能代表我們是怎麼樣的人。

一說出食物兩個字，每個人腦海中浮現的景象是如此不同。

在研究的過程中，他們也發現食物真是太了不起了！

光是一個巧克力，在日本跟在菲律賓就有著相當不同的食感和記憶

藝術家奈絲．蘿柯說巧克力與個人味覺記憶互有連結，那無關乎甜膩或奢華的既定印象；而作家温又柔則認為巧克力代表一種新鮮與美味的象徵，光是聽到「秋摳類斗」就讓人怦然不已。

隨著年齡增長，身體不斷發生變化之外，味覺也會隨之改變喔，味覺分佈的不同，也會創造出不同的故事

味覺的分佈，也與我們的感官記憶緊密相連，日本科學家池田菊苗（Kikunae Ikeda）在1908年提出第五種味道「鮮味」，帶著神秘的圓潤、深沉風味，人們難以說明的「美味感」，就是「鮮味」的魅力。

_{photo by bozzo ／ 写真提供：城崎国際アートセンター（豊岡市）}

_{photo by bozzo / courtesy of Kinosaki Internatinal Arts Center, Toyooka City}

Which sounds tastier: “Aisukurimu” or “ice cream”?
And how does “Chokoreito” sound?

Cute, perhaps, until  you’re stunned by the aggressive umami of a risotto made with chocolate and salted fish.

Such is the depth and wonder of the culinary world–a world untapped without the palettes of the Cruising: Travelling Tongues.

How does the word “food” ring a bell? Between soggy instant noodles during struggling college days and the ant-scattered entrée at the Noma Tokyo pop-up, Food is the cornerstone of our daily life—after all, we are what we eat.

Cruising: Travelling Tongues was first conceived during the Cruising initiative, a residency research program launched by the Taipei Arts Festival in 2023 and now entering its second year. This year, we invited the curatoria team from Kyoto Experiment as guest curators. The project brought together Taiwanese theater director Ming-Chen Lee, Taiwanese-Japanese writer Yuju Wen, Japanese theater artist Jang-Chi, and Filipino performer and dramaturg Ness Roque. Together, they embarked on a collaborative exploration with food as their central theme—investigating how it embodies national and regional identities, and how culinary traditions are shaped, translated, and hybridized across cultural contexts.

In their research, the artists uncovered astonishing versatilities in similar ingredients: the textures and memories evoked by cocoa differed wildly from Japan to the Philippines. As Roque observes, chocolate holds a unique gustatory memory that is inapplicable to notes of sweetness or luxury, yet Wen sees it as a symbol of freshness and delight, so much that even hearing “Chokoreito” incites the flight of butterflies in her stomach.

Moreover, as we age, not only does our body undergo continuous change—our sense of taste evolves as well. Variations in how taste is distributed across the tongue can give rise to different stories, and these distributions are closely tied to our sensory memory. In 1908, Japanese scientist Kikunae Ikeda identified the fifth basic taste: umami. Characterized by its mysterious depth and rounded savoriness, this new taste captures the elusive sense of deliciousness that often escapes precise description—such is the allure of umami.

All aboard the train to Flavortown with Traveling Tongues! 

//Table+Manners//
Upon a trestle table—reimagined as a tongue, an island, a cutting board, or simply a dining table–display the ingredients collected in the artists’ lifelong quest for food.
You may observe, participate, wander around, taste, and even fumble with the ingredients.

//The chefs are ready. You are summoned to the feast. Here’s to help you digest what lies ahead//

Imported Origins: From Kyoto’s Experimental Grounds to Taipei’s Dining Tables

The journey began with a cross-border research initiative launched in 2024 by Kyoto Experiment (KEX), a renowned platform for experimental performance in Japan. Celebrated for its commitment to pushing artistic boundaries and fostering social discourse, KEX views the arts festival as a space for collective reflection, placing value on works-in-progress and emergent ideas. This ethos became a foundational influence on Travelling Tongues.

Initially, participating artists from distinct cultural and disciplinary backgrounds first met Taiwanese audiences through research presentations held during the Taipei Arts Festival’s “Cruising” initiative in 2024. What began as brief encounters soon expanded into deeper fieldwork and dialogue across Kyoto and Taipei. These exchanges sparked unexpected synergies, unfolding themes of historical entanglement, migratory flows, global trade networks, and the subtle currents of power embedded within them.

Flavor Profile: Food as a Moving Vessel of Identity and History

Who are we? Where do we come from?

By tracing the origins of food, Cruising Travelling Tongues frames cuisine as a powerful vessel—one that resists fixed and flattened notions of identity. The act of digging into the layered origins of something as iconic as sushi can trigger unexpected moments of ancestral recognition.

Artist Ness Roque recalls her encounter with funazushi in Japan—a fermented carp dish that awakened memories of buro, a fermented rice-and-fish delicacy from her native Philippines. Though the flavors diverge, the preservation techniques share uncanny resonances. In performance, she brings these connections alive through a playful concoction: chocolate porridge, condensed milk, and salted fish. Meanwhile, director Ming-Chen Lee revisits his breakfast table—a tender scene from childhood filled with the warmth of his mother and the taste of alfalfa sprouts. 

Distinctive Taste: Interdisciplinary Encounters and Multisensory Experiences

At the heart of Travelling Tongues lies KEX’s expansive vision—one rooted in experimentation, dialogue, and transnational exchange. The project convenes a richly diverse group of core artists: Taiwanese theater director Ming-Chen Lee, known for his collective improvisations and immersive visual worlds; Japanese director Jang-Chi, whose work blends visual art, sociology, and folklore with a distinctive mix of humor and provocation; Filipino performer and artist Ness Roque, whose practice draws from interdisciplinary, feminist, and decolonial frameworks; and Taiwanese-Japanese writer Yuju Wen, whose literary investigations of cross-linguistic identity often center on food as a narrative and emotional signifier.

//Behind the Menu// 

Kyoto Experiment 

Kyoto Experiment is a performing arts festival held in Kyoto since 2010. Dedicated to producing and presenting experimental performing arts - both from Japan and overseas - the festival aims to explore and create new dialogues and values in society. Featuring experimental works that move freely between genres such as theatre, dance, music and fine art, the festival hopes to open up new possibilities through the creations, experiences, and ideas that emerge from such a diverse combination.

The Japan Foundation

The Japan Foundation (JF) is Japan’s only Institution dedicated to carrying out comprehensive international cultural exchange programs throughout the world.  As part of the program, “International Creations in Performing Arts,” JF co-organizes “Cruising: Traveling Tongues” with Kyoto Experiment and Taipei Performing Arts Center.

◎節目全長約60分鐘，無中場休息。

◎建議6歲以上觀眾欣賞。

◎中、英、日、菲律賓語發音，中英文字幕。

◎表演中有特殊味道出現。

◎遲到及中途離席的觀眾，須依工作人員引導等候入場。本場演出最後遲進點後即無再入場機會，無法因此退換票，請您特別留意。 

◎演前導聆：每場演出前30分鐘進行。

◎演後座談：每場演出後進行。

【Important Information】

◎ 60mins, no intermission.

◎ Suggested Age 6+ years old.

◎ Chinese, English, Japanese, Filipino without surtitles. 

◎ Latecomers and re-entry subject to discretion.

◎ Pre-performance talk: 30 minutes before each performance.
◎The posy-show talk is held on September 12, September 13, September 14.