Mermen performers seek respect and recognition in growing field

2023-09-07

You’ve heard of mermaids, but have you ever heard of a merman? As the art of mermaid performance gains popularity, more and more men are taking up the art. But male mermaid performers say that they are not given the same respect or recognition as their female colleagues. Only 10% of Taiwan’s mermaid performers are male. They hope that with time, the beauty of their work will be reflected by more opportunities for performance in this growing field. We caught up with some of the top mermen at Taiwan’s first-ever professional competition for the art.

A merman swishes his tail up and down as he floats gently through the water, the picture of elegance. But it’s not easy for a merman like this to find an audience in Taiwan.

Hsu Kai-hsiang
Merman performer
There are just too few mermen here. I saw there are many websites about male mermaids in other countries. They are manly, muscular, or even girlie, they have it all. But here in Taiwan, everyone would think only women could be mermaids. I think men could present a different mermaid style.

Merman Hsu Kai-hsiang started free-diving in 2021. With the help of his coach, he then studied merman performance, and here he is performing at Taiwan’s first-ever mermaid contest. But the stereotype is that mermaids are female. Among the 500 mermaid performers in Taiwan, only 50 are men.

Afa Zhang
Mermaid competition judge
To become a professional mermaid, the problem is that “you have to be chosen,” of course, it’s about if the industry accepts make mermaids, or if people prefer to watch male mermaids, that’s the only way to get hired.

For these performers, the love of their art is just the beginning. They hope that with time, their expertise can gain respect, as audiences open their minds to enjoy the many diverse faces of mermaid and merman beauty.

水中舞者不只女性「男人魚」求表演舞台

2023-09-07

水上運動裡有一種結合潛水的表演「水中美人魚」，雖然印象中扮演美人魚的大部分是女性，但其實也有一群熱愛這項活動的「男人魚」。目前在台灣約有500位從事人魚表演活動的舞者，其中只有十分之一是男性，而這些男人魚們也希望被大眾認可，獲得更多表演的機會。

拖著魚尾裙擺，在海底悠遊，一舉手一投足都優雅。不過對於許多在台灣的男人魚來說，想要獲得一個舞台，並不是一件簡單的事情。

[[人魚表演者許凱翔]]
“喔男生人魚真的少到一個不行，因為我看國外的網站，他們真的很多男人魚，每個都很MAN、都很壯、女的都有，但是在台灣，大家會覺得說，喔，美人魚，只有女生才可以做這件事，但我覺得男生也可以表現出不太一樣的感覺。”

2021年開始學習自由潛水，許凱翔在教練的引導下開始學習成為人魚表演者，還參加了台灣第一屆人魚表演賽，不過因為外界對於美人魚多半是女性的刻板印象，目前台灣500位人魚舞者中，只有50位是男性。

[[人魚表演賽裁判張逸先]]
“要做職業這個事情，就還有一個問題是，被選擇，那當然是這個業界，大家能不能被接受，比如說想要看男生，我們才能夠被才能夠被雇用。”

對這些男表演者來說，不只享受運動帶來的樂趣，也希望能有一個被大眾認可，發光發熱的表演舞台。