Lin's dance comes full circle

Lin decided to present the piece once more as his final curtain call, along with two choreographers, Cheng Tsung-lung, who will succeed Lin to take the reins of the company, and Tao Dance Theater founder, Tao Ye, who exchanged roles in each other's troupes to produce two new pieces: Multiplication and 12.

Premiering in October in Kaohsiung, and titled Exchange, the three pieces are currently on a nationwide tour－with shows in Shanghai, Hangzhou of Zhejiang province and Nanjing of Jiangsu province－and will run through the middle of December.

According to Lin, the idea of Exchange came about in 2017, when Tao and his dance troupe performed in Taipei.

While chatting over a cigarette outside the theater, Tao asked Cheng to choreograph a piece for his dancers in Beijing. While nodding his head, Cheng suggested that Tao reciprocate.

"I heard the idea and I was filled with anticipation to see how they challenged themselves by creating new work with a different troupe of dancers. Because of their hectic schedule, they only had one month for the project," says Lin. "Each of them choreographed a 30-minute piece, but for a show, it's not enough. So I presented my Autumn River.

"After I watched their productions, I told myself 'it's really the time to retire'," Lin adds.