Taiwan Land Development Cooperation and
Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment
Join force on Taiwan Hualien Tulou Project
2012-3-18
At the beginning of the year of Dragon, two old partners who
worked together on 42nd Street and AIDA China tour, Nederlander
Worldwide Entertainment and Beijing Times New Century , joined
force again, signed the "Theater Design Construction and Operation
Consultancy Contract" with Taiwan Land Development Corporation
(TLDC), regarding its upcoming Hualien Tulou Project.
Tulou Project locates in Huilanwan, Hualien County, the largest
county in Taiwan, and it is famous for its natural beauty. Bounded
by the Pacific Ocean to theeast and the Central Mountain Range to
the west, Hualien County is prominent for its abundant tourism
resources, rich culturalheritage, and unparalleled pristine
landscape. There are several major aboriginal tribes in Hualien,
and the diverse ethnic groups and culture have become one of the
key tourism attractions besides the most beautiful river and
coastal scenery of the island. 1/3 of Hualien population is
Hakkanese. The original Hakka building will be reinterpreted and
transformed as a modern artistic performance center to honor and
speak for the local culture.
Today, the Taiwan Land Development Corporation is undertaking
the Hualien Guanghua LOHAS Creative Park Zone Project (the
"Development") to provide premium entertainment options for the
millions of visitors to the area and to further invigorate the
community by injecting more substantial cultural elements and
creativity into Hualien. The current Development plan includes:
• artist workshops
• a medical care park (including a beauty centre, spa and health
facilities and medical tourism hotels)
• entertainment areas (including a mall and cinemas)
• a convention forum
• organic farming
• horseback riding
• an eco pond
• residences
• hotels
• a stone craft hall
A critical element of the Development will be The Hakka Art and
Performance Centre, a unique state-of-the-art facility, utilizing a
design concept which recognizes and honors local culture and
tradition through a modern artistic reinterpretation (the
"Theatre"). As currently envisioned, the Theatre will have 1,200 -
1,350 seats in a traditional proscenium configuration including fly
and orchestra space, allowing for flexible programming including
tourist style productions, comedy, classical, dance and Broadway
musicals.
TLDC reached out to Nederlander and New Century's assistance on
the theater project. Nederlander will provide its expertise to
revise and improve the existing theatre design, provide theatre
management and programming expertise. The goal is to build a solid
foundation for the future cooperation on theater operation and show
production.