Cloud Gate thrilled the Taiwanese cultural scene when it came into being in the 1970s with an unbroken series of innovative dances and dance directions. Lin Hwai-min led the Cloud Gate Dance Theater in their first public performance at Zhongshan Hall in Taipei in 1972. Lin, himself, exhibits tireless curiosity about new forms and directions, and consequently Cloud Gate blends its roots in Asian mythology, folklore, and aesthetics with a modern sensibility. Dancers practice and perform using such diverse movement disciplines and artistic approaches as t'ai chi, meditation, martial arts, modern dance, and ballet.