C.F. Koo Foundation, Taiwan, was founded in 1987 by C. F. Koo, Honorary Chairman of Ho-hsin Group, one of the core business clusters in Taiwan.
Dr. Chen-fu Koo (1917-2005), a respected leader of the business circle in Taiwan and founder of the ROC Economic Councils in the USA, Japan, Korea, and most of those in Asia and Europe, was later Chairman of The Strait Exchange Foundation. He and China’s Tao-han Wang opened the “Koo-Wang Talks” in Singapore in 1993, followed by the “Koo-Wang Meeting” in China in 1998. These two occasions without doubt set the corner stone for all the ensuing peace talks between Taiwan and China.
Today, C. F. Koo Foundation, Taiwan, has grown into an NGO of three main business domains: Production, Theater Management, and Theater Consulting. It is the most active NGO in Taiwan’s Cultural Scenery, conducting productions and touring of Peking Opera as well as performances of all other forms, house-managing two public venues in Taipei, and giving consultation to nearly all venues in Taiwan, old and new. The Board of C. F. Koo Foundation is currently chaired by Dr. Ovid Tzeng, celebrated scholar, ex-Minister of Council for Cultural Affairs and ex-Minister of Education in Taiwan.
The lectures for future businessmen in Taiwan still take place once in a while.
The Cancer Center ( Koo Foundation Sun Yat-sen Cancer Center, Taipei, Taiwan) is now one of the leading cancer centers in the Far East.
Peking Opera Promotion started in 1990 with the well-known and multi-talented Maestro Baochun Li in the lead, and has produced refined neo-classical productions to tour internationally in Europe, America, and Asia.
Koo Foundation founded its own Peking Opera Company──Taipei Li-yuan Peking Opera Theater, in 1997. With its many young and talented artists, the Company created their own brand: “Peking Opera Neo-Classics,” and often tour China for friendly cultural exchanges. Li-yuan has so far been invited many times to perform in China Shanghai International Arts Festival, China Peking Opera Festival, Beijing Music Festival, and many other key performing arts festivals in China, receiving favorable appreciations for the refinement and creativity of is works.
A tourist theatre, TaipeiEye, was added to the Koo Foundation productions in 1999, to promote cultural tourism in Taiwan. It now produces over 200 authentic traditional performances each year, including Taiwanese acrobat performances, hand puppets shows, puppets shows, Taiwanese aboriginal songs and dances, and Chinese operas of many a different dialect. TaipeiEye is recognized by Taiwan Tourism Bureau and highly recommended by international tourism organizations.
The Foundation’s consulting team has 20 years of experiences in productions and venue management. The team, also, has accumulated multiple awards from the Taiwan Ministry of Cultural Affairs, including numerous Golden, Silver, Bronze Awards and, particularly, the Special Achievement Awards, and was voted many times for best theatre service in Taipei City online. The team continues to train professionals in theatre management, and dedicates to knowledge and experience exchanges. Each year, the team hosts front-house trainee interviews and back stage technical specialists training, and many of the trainees go on to serve in different performance venues throughout Taiwan.
C.F. Koo Foundation, Taiwan, under the leadership of Vivien Ku, CEO, looks forward to playing a key role in international cultural scenery by providing programs as well as expertise in art management and venue constructions as emblems of friendship and cultural excellence from Taiwan, which are the results of a 20-year persistent endeavor in performing arts and the sole goal for all who work untiringly in this NGO organization.
