A Dazzling Qixi Night: The 2011 Taipei Dadaocheng Fireworks Festival

Written/Compiled and Reported by Chi Binghui

A romantic Qixi night—have you decided where to celebrate? This year's Valentine's Day just happens to fall on a Saturday. After enjoying a sweet dinner, why not take a stroll along the Dadaocheng Wharf or Yanping Riverside Park? At 8:30 p.m., a spectacular 20-minute fireworks display will light up the sky, allowing couples to witness everlasting love under the brilliant bursts of color.

This year’s Dadaocheng Fireworks Festival is themed “A Chance Encounter in Yongle Street,” as Dihua Street during the Japanese colonial period (1895–1945) was called “Yongle Street.” Along with Taiping Street (now Yanping North Road) and Gang Street (Guide Street), it formed the three main north-south thoroughfares of Dadaocheng. Silk, ceramics, medicinal herbs, and handicrafts from mainland China were transported to various parts of Taiwan via the Dadaocheng Wharf, while Taiwan’s rice, sugar, and camphor were exported from here, making it the most prosperous hub of trade at the time.

In 1905, the Japanese colonial government launched an urban expansion plan. The introduction of Western-style modern landscapes erased the outdated and sluggish impressions of the Qing Dynasty era, earning Dadaocheng the nickname “the city street of the islanders.” Tea merchants, fabric traders, and import-export businesses gathered here, bringing economic prosperity and also fueling an entertainment culture. Folk performances in front of temples never ceased, with numerous temples, traditional opera troupes, and artists converging in the area, giving Dadaocheng the moniker “theater cave.” Later, the northern-style opera and glove puppetry gained immense popularity, and many puppet theater troupes established their offices on Liangzhou Street, which came to be known as “Liangzhou Puppetry Street,” making puppetry one of Dadaocheng’s important cultural elements.

The “2011 Taipei Dadaocheng Fireworks Festival” is designed around the concept of “theater,” using “exhibitions” and “performances” to depict the entertainment culture of Dadaocheng in its heyday, recreating the vibrant charm of the former theater cave. Starting at 3 p.m., there will be traditional opera performances, theme songs of glove puppetry sung by Super Idol singers, performances by the Taiwan Original Puppet Theater, and tributes to Master Li Tien-lu. Surrounding activities include the “Stories of Dadaocheng—Film Retrospective Exhibition” and the “Li Tien-lu Glove Puppetry Artifacts Exhibition.” The grand finale, the “fireworks show,” features a modern rock arrangement of traditional glove puppetry music, infused with elements of Valentine’s Day, and all are welcome to join in the celebration.