The Sun

4 CHAIRS THEATRE is a Taiwan-based company driven by devising theatre pieces, original writing, and localised reinterpretation. Through collaborative processes that focus on the here and now, the company seeks to reflect the realities of everyday life, contemporary society, and lived human experiences. Since its founding in 2007, 4 CHAIRS has been a multiple-time Taishin Arts Award nominee and has presented works at major venues such as the National Theater and Concert Hall (NTCH), National Taichung Theater, and Taipei Performing Arts Center. In 2025, the company’s The Sun received multiple nominations at the inaugural Taipei Theatre Awards, winning Best Director and Best Video Design. Selected by the National Culture and Arts Foundation as a “TAIWAN TOP Performing Arts Group”, 4 CHAIRS has become one of Taiwan’s leading theatre companies, known for its artistic quality, distinctive aesthetics, and strong audience connection.

Playwright and director born in 1974. His style has a science fiction and philosophical worldview, and his production is unique, making time and space appear seamless. He has won many theatre awards in Japan. He also works on video scripts, novels, and manga originals. His masterpiece Before We Vanish was made into a film by Kiyoshi Kurosawa.

Performances of his works in Paris and South Korea have been well-received, and translated versions in various languages have been published in recent years.

In 2023, his latest work To Deliver a Soul won the Yomiuri Theater Award for Best Work.

Artistic Director of 4 CHAIRS THEATRE, Tora Hsu holds an MA in Advanced Theatre Practice from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and is currently a full-time lecturer in the Department of Theatre Arts at Taipei National University of the Arts, as well as a co-curator of the 2025 Tainan Arts Festival. He was selected as one of Performing Arts Review (PAR) Magazine’s “People of the Year” in 2021 and was a recipient of the Cloud Gate’s “Art Makers Project” in 2022. As a theatre director, his works span a wide spectrum—from Taiwanese originals and localised adaptations to popular entertainment and socially engaged theatre. His creative vision centres on collectivity, pursuing a text-based “new realism” aesthetic. Several of his productions have been nominated for the Taishin Arts Award. He received the Best Director Award at the inaugural Taipei Theatre Awards for The Sun, and his work is also supported by the 2025 Taipei Theater MVP Grant from Taipei Performing Arts Center.

Chen Yi-En graduated from Department of Theatre Arts at Taipei National University of the Arts. Chen has collaborated with 4 CHAIRS THEATRE, KINGKONGWAVE, Shakespeare's Wild Sisters Group, Style Lab, Creative Society, Riverbed Theatre, Story Works, House Peace, Myan Myan Studio, Voleur du Feu Theatre, and Yang's Ensemble.