Students trickled into Norris University Center’s McCormick Auditorium to see rabbit and tiger shadow puppets jump across a giant screen Tuesday evening.

Chinese Theatre Works – a non-profit New York theatre company – tries to preserve and promote traditional Chinese performing arts by showcasing their shadow theatre puppetry performance, “Tiger Tales.” About 50 Northwestern students and Evanston residents attended the show.

“Tiger Tales” – a combination of short stories enacted with puppets – is a mix of different Chinese idioms and folk tales, said Kuang-Yu Fong, executive director and performer.

“One of the idioms used is a common Chinese one: ‘Working for the emperor is as dangerous as working for a tiger,'” she said.

The real reason behind the show is to introduce people to Chinese culture through moving art, Fong said.

Before the show, Fong introduced the four-member cast – three puppeteers and one storyteller – to the audience.

“We are the power-puff team!” exclaimed Fong, referring to the three female puppeteers and one male narrator.

Chinese Theatre Works members said they are the only Chinese shadow puppetry performers in the country. The company was created in 1975 during China’s Cultural Revolution. During that time, no one in China was allowed to perform traditional art forms, said Fong, a native of Taiwan.

“So (the company creator) wanted to save this performing art,” she said.

Vivian Shan, president of Taiwanese American Student Club, said this is the first time the group has invited a theatrical company to perform for NU students.

“Generally TASC has one or two speakers a year come to campus,” said Shan, a Weinberg senior. “We decided to bring the shadow puppet group this quarter to showcase a cultural tradition and expose Northwestern to Taiwanese American artists.”

Throughout the show, the narrator encouraged the audience to participate and say “the tiger’s in my kitchen, and he won’t get out!” when he asked, “What’s the matter?”

The puppets were made from donkey hide, a type of animal skin that provided for intricate detail when projected onto the large overhead screen.

“No animals were hurt for this show,” joked Fong at the end of the performance.

Alice Lin, TASC’s treasurer, said the performance reminded her of the movie “Shrek.”

“There were a lot of political references and jokes that only parents and older students would get,” the Weinberg sophomore said.

“The mix of American themes with Chinese culture was very interesting,” said James Wang, a Weinberg sophomore. Wang jokingly added that he was ashamed he did not know any of the Chinese idioms referred to in the story.

Reach Christie Ileto at [email protected].