Center for the Arts to present National Acrobats of Taiwan, China's National Acrobatic Troupe

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The Center for the Arts at the University at Buffalo will present National Acrobats of Taiwan, ROC, at 8 p.m. on April 20 in the Mainstage theater in the Center for the Arts on the UB North (Amherst) Campus.

Balancing spinning plates on a pole, performing handstands on top of stacked chairs, riding one bicycle with a dozen friends -- these feats look easy when performed by the National Acrobats of Taiwan. As world-class entertainers who defy gravity with their precision, strength, and breathtaking agility, these artful acrobats create an inspiring and colorful drama with their national art form.

Since the Han Dynasty (206 BC-240 AD), dramatic folk arts and variety shows have blended with the deepest roots of Chinese civilization. The skillful performers often use objects of daily life, such as chairs, tables, poles, ladders, bowls, plates, bottles and jars as stage props. The masters of the Fu Hsing Academy have preserved the systematic teaching methods of ancient China to cultivate performers of folk dramatic arts, in order to preserve this traditional art form, and to pass it on to the next generation.

The Fu Hsing Chinese Acrobatics Troupe was founded in 1980, as approved by the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China. With the merger of the National Fu Hsing Dramatic Arts Academy and the National Kuo Kuang Academy of Arts, the Troupe's name was changed to the National Chinese Acrobatic Troupe of the Republic of China on Taiwan.

The graduates of the Academy have toured the world as the Republic of China's National Acrobatic Troupe. The National Acrobats are generally considered the foremost company from all of China. Currently, the troupe is made up of over 40 young performers, who have received about eight years of strict training.

In 1998, the National Acrobats completed a highly-acclaimed tour of the United States and Canada. The company returned in 2002 for another successful 70-city North American tour.

Tickets for National Acrobats of Taiwan are $15 for adults and $12 for children ages 12 and under. Tickets are available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday in the Center for the Arts Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations, including Kaufmann's. To charge tickets, call 852-5000; in Canada, call 1-416-870-8000. For group sales, call 645-6771. For more information, call 645-ARTS. The Center for the Arts is a Ticketfast location.