New York: Shinehouse Theatre will become the first Taiwanese group to appear at the SoHo Playhouse in New York with a run of performances of "The Whisper of the Waves" from Jan. 24 to Feb. 2.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Taipei-based theater company's appearance is part of the SoHo Playhouse's International Fringe Encore Series, which sees stand-out plays from international festivals given an opportunity for an "extended run Off-Broadway," as noted by the SoHo Playhouse.

In a statement on Monday, Taiwan's Ministry of Culture revealed that Shinehouse Theatre caught the eyes of talent scouts for the "Encore" series while performing "The Whisper of the Waves" at the 2024 Prague Fringe in the Czech Republic.

The statement from the ministry highlighted that Shinehouse Theatre edged past competing groups from the United Kingdom, the United States, Italy, and India to be selected for the SoHo Playhouse's "Encore" series.

"The Whisper of the Waves," which draws inspiration from the worldwide COVID-19 lockdowns starting in 2020, delves into the common themes of "love, loneliness, and existence," according to an introduction of the play on SoHo Playhouse's website.

The play explores the relationships between interdependence and companionship through bonds forged between humans and plants and humans and animals, aiming to show that they are "not lonely despite being alone," as stated in the introduction.

"The Whisper of the Waves" has been translated into English, Japanese, and Korean and has been staged at the Korean People Theater Festival in 2020, the Seoul International Environmental Theater Festival in 2021, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2022.

In a statement, the Taipei Cultural Center in New York expressed the hope that Shinehouse Theatre's debut at the SoHo Playhouse will spotlight Taiwanese performing groups and lead to more invitations to perform abroad.