Taiwan choreographer Bulareyaung Pagarlava is wowing audiences at home and abroad with works inspired by his Indigenous roots.
Hailing from a Paiwan community in the southeastern county of Taitung, Bulareyaung got his start as a dancer. After completing his degree at Taipei National University of the Arts, he joined Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, the country’s foremost contemporary dance troupe, in 1996.
BDC dancers tell their personal stories in the troupe’s 2019 work “#Yes or No.” (Courtesy of BDC / Photo by Lin Chun-yun & Yang Jen-lin)
There Bulareyaung was encouraged to try his hand at choreography, and in 2000 he began his transition by creating pieces for Cloud Gate 2, an offshoot of the original group.
One of the artist’s most important early works is “Faceless,” which depicts the plight of Indigenous teenage prostitutes in Taiwan’s major cities. Debuted in 1995, the work not only attracted wide notice but convinced the artist to take a Paiwan name in defiance of the ethnic discrimination he had grappled with throughout his life.
In the mid-2000s Bulareyaung left Cloud Gate to co-found LAFA & Artists Dance Company with longtime partner Sheu Fang-yi. In the following years, he also developed close ties with Martha Graham Dance Company in New York City, choreographing for the prestigious group in 2009 and 2011.
Bulareyaung watches dancers rehearing for BDC’s latest piece “tiaen tiamen Episode 1.” (Staff photo / Chin Hung-hao)
Bulareyaung returned home in 2015 to launch his own troupe in Taitung and has created 10 dances for the company to date, including 2017’s “Stay That Way” featuring three Indigenous guest vocalists singing their life stories. The piece drew attention for referencing a demonstration in Taipei City that protested regulations infringing on native peoples’ land rights.
BDC is one to keep an eye on as Bulareyaung continues pouring his heart into showcasing Taiwan’s diverse Indigenous cultures and stories.
“With 16 officially recognized Indigenous peoples, Taiwan is a mother lode of inspiration for creation,” the choreographer said. “BDC will keep dancing and staging exceptional pieces because when we are seen, Taiwan’s rich ethnic tapestry is seen, too.” (E) (By Oscar Chung)
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BDC dancers study the movements of Atayal people as they perform daily tasks in an Indigenous community in northern Taiwan to better incorporate them into the 2020 work “Rustling, Whirring.” (Courtesy of BDC / Photo by Liu Chen-hsiang)
(This article is adapted from “Rooted Artist” in the May/June 2023 issue of Taiwan Review. The Taiwan Review archives dating to 1951 are available online.)