​REVIEWS
"Passion, pure joy, and raw emotion emanate from the stage in the company's aptly titled Varhung—Heart to Heart. Through driving movement that grows out of the haunting songs, the dance work builds to a physically pummeling climax. By turns uplifting and devastating, it made for an inspiring end to the Vancouver International Dance Festival."
​- Janet Smith Georgia Straight
"In both the music and humpbacked dancers pacing back and forth, it felt like watching the dance work of 'TAO Dance Theater', with the freedom of relieving from the traditions. Baru's work is very much like Akram Khan's. They both use traditions as a foundation. Yet, Baru's work is more naughty and mischievous."
- ARTalks / Ping Chiung Nan
"The styles of contemporary dance and traditional ceremonies are integrated in this dance work. There is a kind of contradiction between being depressed and being hopeful about the future life which can be found in the religion, marriages, human body outlines, interactions between a male and a female, the nature, and the mysterious."
- Art Plus (publisher: ArtMap) / Pei-Yu Chen
"In the tipsy state while stepping left and right, the dancers led the audience to peek at the haze of worry locked deep inside. However, this work did not reveal any specific plot or secret buried deep inside. Instead, it created a twilight zone between reality and fantasy."
​- Vivian HSU / Performing Arts Review
"More spine and shoulder blade movements were used to create horizontal gurgling motions, extending to the shoulders, arms, wrists, and palms. Through vibrations, drawing circles, and motions, the theme of handicrafts woven using shell ginger was cleverly caught. In the ancient chanting and silent ravings, there was a layer hidden below of strong emotions being taken out."
​- Yu Cheng WANG / Performing Arts Review
"The traditional style can still be seen in the choreography, with movements such as hands holding together, stable and low steps, transition from individuals to groups, and split of groups into individuals. In fact, the four people holding hands represents a complete cycle, showing that they are interwoven and willing to open their hearts to each other."
​- Yu Xuan XIE / Performing Arts Review
"Though they went to study dance in universities in cities for a period of time, their simple and implicit qualities remain uncontaminated. Their steady and strong movement leads us back to a solid state of life from this adrift and scattered world, connects us with the earth in both physical and spiritual perspectives. 'As Four Step' takes audiences through a tunnel to a place which is supposed to be raw and lively but is now mottled and pale."
​-ArtMap / Xu,Wei-Ying
"'As Four Step', based on Paiwanese dance steps and demonstrated with concise theatre design, depicts choreographer's mental state. 4 dancers reconstruct a couple of physical symbols, which leads out choreographer's body languages of life experience. As Four Step, with simplicity and purity, expresses choreographer's state of mind and has been one of fine productions over the last few years."
​-Art Critics of Ministry of Culture
"By creating new languages of modern dance, the audience can still intensely sense the nurture of mother culture. Minimalism in theatre design bringing up contemporary interpretation, boldness and impact represented by dancers, and the images in vogue form Tjimur's unique aesthetics successfully."
​- Art Critics of Ministry of Culture
"Purified body movements which combine with rhythm and group-form transition go smoothly and unhindered. The performance imprints tradition on the audience implicitly and represents its unique characteristics. What a well-structured performance, full of energy, performed by professional dancers! ."
The heritage of indigenous music and dance is excavated from the deep, purified, distilled, and then kneaded into a related theme that is full of struggle – thus we arrive at Qai~i—The Sigh of Memory, arguably the most exciting work of indigenous theatre in recent years. The magnitude of sound and fury in this dance work is disproportionate to its modest scale. The physical and aural expressions of the dancers are both pristine and intense, dissolving the discrepancy between the over-sophistication of professional theater performers and the self-consciousness of amateur indigenous performers. At last, we can rest assured that traditional indigenous music and dance will flourish on the professional stage, and give our applause.
- Reason for Nomination, the 13th Taishin Arts Award / Fang-chi Zhou
It enjoyable and refreshing to see Tjimur's new interpretation of traditional Paiwan dance in Umaq. The choreographer has simulated the essence of traditional Paiwan dance in modern form. The simulation of Umaq becomes a mirror for the audience to project their own imagination of traditional Paiwan culture. It provides clues for audience to bring alive their imagination and memories of Paiwan culture.
- Performing Arts Review / Yu-shih Lin