TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Gian Carlo Michelini (秘克琳), an Italian-born priest who founded Lan Yang Dancers, passed away Saturday at the age of 91, leaving a legacy of faith, culture, and diplomacy expressed through dance.

Michelini spent more than six decades in Taiwan, dedicating his life to nurturing young talent and promoting local culture. He was granted citizenship in 2017, a reflection of the deep roots he had established, according to CNA and UDN.

Michelini moved to Yilan County in 1964 at the age of 29, beginning a lifelong commitment to the place he would come to call home. Arriving as a member of the Camillian Order, a Catholic religious order known for caring for the sick and the poor, he felt that children, too, deserved the same attention and opportunity.

With that conviction, he persuaded the order to support the creation of what became Taiwan's pioneer children’s dance troupe, the Lan Yang Dancers. Drawing inspiration from the rhythms and colors of the Lanyang Plain, Michelini brought Taiwan’s cultural identity to audiences around the world, according to the Yilan County Government.

Starting in 1974, the troupe toured internationally during a time of diplomatic isolation following Taiwan’s withdrawal from the United Nations. That same year, the troupe performed before Pope Paul VI at the Vatican, becoming the first group in the world to dance before a pope.

Over the decades, the troupe staged more than 1,000 performances worldwide and earned widespread recognition. Michelini also helped bring the world to Yilan, inviting international performers and contributing to the development of the Yilan International Children's Folklore and Folkgame Festival, turning it into a globally connected cultural event.

A funeral Mass will be held on the morning of April 9 at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church in Yilan. He will be remembered not only as a priest, but as someone who carried Taiwan’s story beyond its borders, reflecting his own wish to continue contributing to the country.