“Wandering Talks” invites a pair of Asian diasporic dance artists to be in conversation as they lead a group of people through a neighbourhood of personal significance—for example, where they live or work.  

Wandering Talks is a public series that allows us to learn more about artists in a casual setting, connecting a place and people to an artist’s creative process. 

Reflecting on how one’s life and art weave together and how these two perspectives sit with each other.  Our identities both influence and are influenced by the places we inhabit. Each wandering talk will “emplace” each programmed artist: They will weave place, life, and art together as they explore topics of interest to them, focusing on their relationship to the land and the communities that gather there. Being in conversation with another artist adds dialogue and sociality while reflecting that we are formed and reformed through our encounters with others.

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Chou Kuan-Jou is a choreographer and performer based in Taipei, Taiwan. The practice employs the fluidity of sexuality as a strategy to reframe boundaries of sensory experience, space, and body politics. Through touch and bodily interaction, the work expands into a dance-based dialogic space. Embodied methods include bodily practices, workshop facilitation, and performance. The research also extends into social advocacy, engagement with sex volunteering with Hand Angels, an organization advocating for the sexual rights of people with disabilities. Kuan’s work TOMATO received five-star reviews and awards at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was later invited to present at The Coronet Theatre in London and at Melbourne Fringe, and was described by The Guardian as “unique and full of potential.” In 2024, Kuan initiated the Free Touch practice, which has been carried out across four countries. A concept-derived work, Free Touch: Staging Presence, received the Best Work in Fringe Award at the 2025 Taipei Fringe Festival.