Tai Chi is a Chinese martial art practiced around the world and used by performers of different mediums, including theater. Known in Chinese as Taiji boxing [太極拳, Taijiquan in traditional Chinese], the martial art developed in China from previous Taoist and Buddhist practices around the 17th century. In the 20th century, there were attempts to standardize Taijiquan by creating national associations with their schools’ representatives at international sports events. In 2020, it was included in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Taijiquan is also known for its medical benefits and can be seen widely practiced in parks in cities in the Sinophone world and elsewhere. But Taijiquan is also used in performing arts, either as part of the performance itself or in training methodology. Global Voices interviewed two practitioners and researchers who study the intersection of taijiquan and theater. Ho Ai-cheng is a Taiwanese scholar who studied in France and investigates the uses of Taijiquan practice and philosophy in preparing actors and theatrical performances. She was also trained in Chinese Kun Opera in Taiwan and works as a theatre teacher, Taijiquan instructor, and actress. She is now based in Taipei. Alexandre Mathys is a Swiss researcher who trained as a historian and majored in Asian studies. His research revolves around the globalization of Chinese martial arts in the context of soft power, with a special focus on Africa. He is the co-founder of the academic network Martial Arts Project with Ho Ai-cheng. He is a former Wushu athlete and has been teaching traditional Chinese martial arts. Currently, he is a visiting scholar at National Taiwan University in Taipei. The interview took place in French over email after prolonged conversations in a café in Taipei. Portrait of Alexandre Mathys, photo used with permission. Filip Noubel (FN): Can you talk about the master-disciple relation in the Taijiquan tradition? Alexandre Mathys (AM): Le lien est complexe et mouvant. Il diffère du rapport enseignant-élève qui existe aussi dans les arts martiaux chinois. Il se caractérise par un rite de passage sous forme de cérémonie relativement codifiée, le baishi 拜師, qui symbolise l’entrée dans la famille martiale à l’image d’une porte que l’on franchit. Le disciple accepte implicitement un certain nombre d’obligations comme celle de pérenniser l’héritage qu’il a reçu. La taille de la famille martiale modifie aussi les modalités et les rapports. Ainsi, un maître qui n’a qu’un ou qu’une disciple n’entretiendra sans doute pas le même rapport que certains maîtres de Taijiquan célèbres qui comptent des centaines de disciples répartis dans le monde. Il est possible de rencontrer des pratiquants ayant plusieurs maîtres. Dans ce cas, leurs maîtres ne dispensent généralement pas le même style. En général, cela implique le consentement du chacun mutuel des maîtres. Il peut y avoir aussi des contextes très spécifiques (un décès du premier maître par exemple). AM: The link is complex and evolving. It differs from the teacher-student relationship that also exists in Chinese martial arts. It is characterized by a rite of passage in the form of a relatively codified ceremony, the baishi 拜師, which symbolizes an act of joining the martial art family, a a door that one passes through. The disciple implicitly accepts a certain number of obligations such as perpetuating the heritage one is receiving. The size of the martial art family also affects the modalities and relationships. Thus, a master who has only one disciple will probably not have the same relationship as certain famous Taijiquan masters who have hundreds of disciples spread around the world. It is possible to meet practitioners with several masters. In this case, their masters generally do not provide the same style. In general, this implies there is mutual consent of each of the masters. There can also be very specific contexts (the death of the initial master for example). Portrait of Ho Ai-cheng, photo used with permission. Ho Ai-Cheng (HAC) : Traditionnellement, l’enseignement de Taijiquan passe du maître aux élèves. Selon un adage chinois, « l’enseignement oral inspire la vraie compréhension » (kuochuan xinshou 口傳心授). Il faut enseigner avec le cœur. C’est à la personne qui l’enseigne de faire en sorte que soit conservée l’essence du Taijiquan. Néanmoins, « le maître initie l’apprenti mais sa technique dépend de l’effort de l’élève. «Tu peux guider un cheval vers l’eau, mais tu ne peux pas boire pour lui. » La maîtrise de la technique ne peut être acquise que par l’élève lui-même. Chaque maître porte des spécialités différentes dans la pratique. C’est nourrissant d’apprendre avec des maîtres différents.