SDG3
Japanese GABEZ Dance Mime Performs at NCKU, Sparking Imagination Through Physical Expression
Guided by the NCKU Office of Student Affairs and co-hosted by the Tainan Highest Good Education Foundation and the NCKU Happiness Research Club, the "GABEZ Dance Mime Live ~ Anime Debut" was held with great enthusiasm at the NCKU Phoenix Theatre on April 9, 2026. The world-renowned Japanese duo GABEZ (Masa and Hitoshi)—who amazed the world with their "Kinetic Pictogram" performance at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony—brought their exquisite "Silent Manzai" style to NCKU, leading faculty and students on an artistic adventure that transcended language and rediscovered pure passion.
The GABEZ team was invited to Taiwan by the Pingtung-based Owl Children's Theater to prepare for the 2026 Little Star Arts Festival. With the active support and coordination of the Tainan Highest Good Education Foundation, a campus tour stop was arranged at NCKU. The organizers hoped that the infectious power of physical theater would reignite the passions that often fade with age, reminding everyone that growing up doesn't have to mean becoming dull, and encouraging all to maintain a carefree, childlike spirit.
GABEZ demonstrated exceptional stage presence from the very start. Clad in fluorescent performance suits, the two performers quickly broke down the audience's barriers through rhythmic clapping, screaming, and stomping. In the "Slow-Motion Martial Arts" segment, they used precise muscle control to simulate cinematic special effects and let the audience's cheers decide the winner, transforming the crowd from passive observers into active participants.
The classic mime segment featured an "invisible briefcase," using shifts in gravity to illustrate the weight of social pressure. They invited children onto the stage for an interaction whose innocence brought the first major wave of laughter. In the "Rubber Ducky" routine, GABEZ displayed delicate emotional handling, using sound effects and gaze to portray a comical struggle of a soul "drifting out" and "diving into" a human body, turning abstract imagination into concrete physical conflict.
The comedic tension reached its peak during the "Drill Sergeant and Troublemaker Soldier" scene. When the sergeant blew his whistle to issue stern commands, only to be met with flamboyant poses, the performance offered a humorous reflection on the possibilities outside social rules. During the upgraded interaction segment, enthusiastic NCKU students rushed to the stage, even improvising their own "extra bits." Their quick wits were seamlessly integrated into the act, turning the entire theater into one giant stage where youthful energy and joy filled the air.
In the final "Ninjutsu Chase," the audience showed great rapport by intentionally pointing in the wrong direction to "cover" the fugitive, turning the theater into a massive, playful assembly of "accomplices." For the finale, the actors used a simple blue board to transform into a shield, a window, and wings—giving life to an inanimate object and perfectly embodying the soul of mime: imagination.
During the Q&A session following the performance, an NCKU student amazed the crowd by conversing directly with the actors in Japanese. This event proved the artistic heights of GABEZ: when these actors are on stage, every second is a performance, and even the emcee and the audience become part of the masterpiece. Through precise movements and collective imagination, GABEZ successfully helped NCKU faculty and students cross language and age barriers, finding their most carefree and innocent selves through laughter while fostering cultural exchange and broadening horizons.
The GABEZ team was invited to Taiwan by the Pingtung-based Owl Children's Theater to prepare for the 2026 Little Star Arts Festival. With the active support and coordination of the Tainan Highest Good Education Foundation, a campus tour stop was arranged at NCKU. The organizers hoped that the infectious power of physical theater would reignite the passions that often fade with age, reminding everyone that growing up doesn't have to mean becoming dull, and encouraging all to maintain a carefree, childlike spirit.
GABEZ demonstrated exceptional stage presence from the very start. Clad in fluorescent performance suits, the two performers quickly broke down the audience's barriers through rhythmic clapping, screaming, and stomping. In the "Slow-Motion Martial Arts" segment, they used precise muscle control to simulate cinematic special effects and let the audience's cheers decide the winner, transforming the crowd from passive observers into active participants.
The classic mime segment featured an "invisible briefcase," using shifts in gravity to illustrate the weight of social pressure. They invited children onto the stage for an interaction whose innocence brought the first major wave of laughter. In the "Rubber Ducky" routine, GABEZ displayed delicate emotional handling, using sound effects and gaze to portray a comical struggle of a soul "drifting out" and "diving into" a human body, turning abstract imagination into concrete physical conflict.
The comedic tension reached its peak during the "Drill Sergeant and Troublemaker Soldier" scene. When the sergeant blew his whistle to issue stern commands, only to be met with flamboyant poses, the performance offered a humorous reflection on the possibilities outside social rules. During the upgraded interaction segment, enthusiastic NCKU students rushed to the stage, even improvising their own "extra bits." Their quick wits were seamlessly integrated into the act, turning the entire theater into one giant stage where youthful energy and joy filled the air.
In the final "Ninjutsu Chase," the audience showed great rapport by intentionally pointing in the wrong direction to "cover" the fugitive, turning the theater into a massive, playful assembly of "accomplices." For the finale, the actors used a simple blue board to transform into a shield, a window, and wings—giving life to an inanimate object and perfectly embodying the soul of mime: imagination.
During the Q&A session following the performance, an NCKU student amazed the crowd by conversing directly with the actors in Japanese. This event proved the artistic heights of GABEZ: when these actors are on stage, every second is a performance, and even the emcee and the audience become part of the masterpiece. Through precise movements and collective imagination, GABEZ successfully helped NCKU faculty and students cross language and age barriers, finding their most carefree and innocent selves through laughter while fostering cultural exchange and broadening horizons.
The Japanese duo GABEZ brought their campus tour to NCKU’s Phoenix Theatre on April 9, receiving a warm and enthusiastic welcome.
In the "Slow-Motion Martial Arts" segment, GABEZ used precise muscle control to simulate cinematic special effects. By letting the audience’s cheers decide the winner, they transformed the crowd from mere spectators into active participants who drove the plot forward.
The audience interaction during the "Drill Sergeant and Troublemaker Soldier" segment brought the comedic tension to its peak.
Group photo of event participants.
