IsLand Bar is an ongoing performance project that merges cocktail-making with storytelling in an intimate bar setting. Each artist inhabits their own “island,” crafting a signature cocktail — a sensory and political blend of local histories, lived realities, and imagined futures, creating a microcosm of their own cultural context. The bar becomes a porous platform for meeting, sharing, and rethinking what makes up our cultural and social identities. Audiences are invited not only to drink, but to listen, exchange, and embody perspectives across geographies and disciplines.
Originally conceived in 2017 at ADAM (Asia Discovers Asia Meeting for Contemporary Performance) in Taiwan, IsLand Bar was commissioned by the Taipei Arts Festival in 2018, led by Scarlet Yu, Chikara Fujiwara, and Lee Ming-Chen. In 2019, the project evolved into an open-source format, supported by the Taipei Performing Arts Center (TPAC), enabling anyone across Asia to create their own editions simply by collaborating with any previous participant. Since then, IsLand Bar has traveled to various cities, establishing itself as a fluid platform for trans-cultural exchange, collective storytelling, and critical reflection on the forces that shape identity.
Since then, IsLand Bar has manifested in different versions and contexts:
IsLand Bar (2017-
IsLand Bar is an open-source project first initiated as an experiment in ADAM* 2017 and commissioned in Taipei Arts Festival 2018 led by principal artists Scarlet Yu (Hong Kong/Germany), Chikara Fujiwara (Japan) and Lee Ming-Chen (Taiwan).
Since then, IsLand Bar has manifested in different versions and contexts:
IsLand Bar (Taipei) 2017 - ADAM
with: Scarlet Yu, Chikara Fujiwara, Li Ming-Chen, Henry Tan, Moe Satt, Leeroy New, Huang Ding-Yun, Tora Hsu, Allen Lin
IsLand Bar (Taipei) 2018 – Commissioned by Taipei Arts Festival
by Scarlet Yu, Chikara Fujiwara, Li Ming-Chen
臺北藝術節策展人 Taipei Arts Festival Curator | 鄧富權 Tang Fu Kuen
with: Scarlet Yu, Chikara Fujiwara, Li Ming-Chen, Fei-hao Chen, Joyce Ho + Vera Sung, Moe Satt, Leeroy New, Minori Sumiyoshiyama, Tuan Mami, Wei-Yuan Ma
IsLand Bar – Sweet Potato Affair (Taipei) 2019
by Henry Tan & Huang Ding-Yun
Taipei Arts Festival Curator: 鄧富權 Tang Fu Kuen
Co-create and perform with: 楊芳芳Jo Yu(菲律賓 Philipines)、梁芯櫻 Indri Leonardi (印尼Indonesia)、蔡尚志 Chua Shenzi (馬來西亞Malaysia)、Paul Adrien (法國 France)、丘世劍 Khoo Shi Jian (馬來西亞Malaysia)、 夏雪莉 Shashwati Talukdar (印度India)
IsLand Bar – A Butterfly’s Dream (Shanghai) 2019
Rockbund Art Museum
by: Chikara Fujiwara, Scarlet Yu, Minori Sumiyoshiyama
Co-create and perform with: Chikara Fujiwara, Scarlet Yu, Minori Sumiyoshiyama, Grass Stage, JK Anicoche, Pavinee Ae Samakkabutr, SONG Yi-min, Kusudai Class, The Moon Platform Group
IsLand Bar (Yokohama) – Port Undersea 2020
by Chikara Fujiwara, Minori Sumiyoshiyama, River Lin
Co-create and perform with: Chang, Kang-Hua (TW) 張剛華（台湾),Fujiwara, Chikara (JP) 藤原ちから（日本）Huang, Ding-Yun (TW) 黃鼎云（台湾）Ishigami, Natsuki (JP) 石神夏希（日本）Niu, Jun-Qiang (TW) 牛俊強（台湾）Song, Yi-Won (KR/TW) 宋怡玟（韓国/台湾）Sumiyoshiyama, Minori (JP) 住吉山実里（日本）Yu, Scarlet (HK/DE) 余美華（香港/ドイツ）
IsLand Bar - Is(o)Land Bar 2020
by River Lin 林人中, Taipei Arts Festival - online
Taipei Arts Festival Curator | 鄧富權 Tang Fu Kuen
Co-create and perform with: 黃鼎云、許哲彬、Betty Apple、張欣、余政達、銘宸、Russ Ligtas、Henry Tan、Scarlet Yu、Vuth Lyno、石神夏希、Elia Nurvista
Melbourne Fringe Festival 2020
CN D Pantin 2021
IsLand Bar (Singapore) - A Home For… 2021
The Substation, Singapore
by Jereh Leung, Scarlet Yu, Norhaizad Adam
Co-create and perform with: Ila, Jereh Leung, Norhaizad Adam, Scarlet Yu, Zarina Muhammad
IsLand Bar (Taipei) - Ratava 2022
Taipei Performing Arts Centre
by Joyce Ho, 鄭先喻
Co-create and perform with: Tuan Mami, 牛俊薔, 鄭先喻, 林安琪Ciwas Tahos, 程昕（Xin Cheng）, 摩．薩特（Moe Satt）