The Paper Windmill Theatre’s “368 Township Children’s Art Project – Sustainable Launch” kicked off last Friday (January 3) with performances of Taiwan Fantasia in three locations: Haoshuo Elementary School in Beigang Township, Yunlin County, the plaza in front of Bao Sheng Da Di Temple in Xinhua, Tainan, and Lequn Elementary School in Qianzhen District, Kaohsiung. Over the course of three days, nearly 7,000 people attended the performances.

In Beigang, Yunlin, the temperature was only 14°C during the performance, prompting one mother to laugh and shout, "I’ve never been a fan of anyone, but for my child, I’m willing to endure the cold wind here." Another audience member excitedly shared with the staff, "The first time I saw this was when I was in fifth grade. It’s been so long, and now you’re finally back. I had to come again to see it!" Local business owner Ms. Huang from "Jin Gui Soup" also contributed to the event by providing her homemade meat soup and herbal jelly for the cast and crew. She said, "My child is a student at Haoshuo Elementary, and I’m so moved to see such a wonderful performance in our hometown. I wanted to make sure Paper Windmill felt the warmth too."

Mr. Wang Benran's family home, which was the founding residence of Radiant Opto-Electronics Corporation 30 years ago, was located in what was then the export processing zone, now known as the Qianzhen Science Park. Upon hearing that the Paper Windmill Theatre would be touring towns across the country again, he decided to give back to his local community. Today, his son, the current chairman Wang Yuchao, attended the performance to show support. He shared, "Around 2010, my father was introduced to the Paper Windmill Theatre, and he fully supported the cause. He often participated in person and said the performances on stage were wonderful, but what he enjoyed most was seeing the joyful, laughter-filled faces of the children in the audience."

Paper Windmill's Board Director, Huang Zicheng, also attended the Beigang performance with his daughter, son-in-law, and grandson. He remarked, "The 368 Art Project opens children’s eyes with each performance filled with diverse artistic expressions. My son-in-law is Australian and was deeply moved. Despite the language barrier, he was able to connect with the performance, and we look forward to more people joining and supporting 368."

The three performances also strengthened local ties. In addition to families attending, the Bao Sheng Da Di Temple in Xinhua helped apply for road permissions, maintain traffic order, and even provided three meals for the staff on the day of the performance. They especially prepared celebratory “braised noodles” to warmly welcome everyone with Tainan's characteristic hospitality and delicious food.

The Qianzhen District Office in Kaohsiung mobilized volunteers to provide support. After the performance, a mother and her child contributed to the donation box. She told her child, "Today’s amazing performance was made possible by the generosity of many kind-hearted uncles and aunties. If you enjoyed the show, let’s help out so that more children can experience something like this too."