Symposium Antigone

To fathom the meaning and potential layers of interpretation of ANTIGONE for theater in Vietnam.
In cooperation with ZzzReview.

Antigone by Sophocles was written in ancient Greece about 2462 years ago. This may seem a long time ago. But there are surprisingly many aspects to this play which make it relevant as food of thought even in contemporary Vietnam.

There are for example parallels of Antigone with Vietnamese female heroines of history and parallels with Truyen Kieu. A strong female figure, taking responsibility for what she thinks should be done in a moment of crisis, with religion, karma and reflections about what should be a proper life in justice and dignity.

Theater directors, stage designers, composers, script writers, graphic novelists, literary critics, translators, activists for gender justice are welcome to apply for participation in the symposium. Let us jointly look at this jewel of World literature and find out how the audiences can be made interested in reading the play or seeing it on stage.
 
The first day of the symposium (April 23, 2021) is about INTERPRETING ANTIGONE.
We are pointing at some possible approaches towards an interpretation of ANTIGONE. What references can be made from Vietnamese history and culture to ANTIGONE? What role and image of women is conveyed in ANTIGONE? How does ANTIGONE differ from TRUYEN KIEU? Why must ANTIGONE die? Which other themes are hidden in this piece of world literature that can be unfolded in today's context?

The second day (April 24, 2021) is about aesthetic issues.
We look at recent productions of ANTIGONE on Vietnamese and German stages. We ask what artistic forms have they taken or which aesthetic directions may productions take in the future. We will invite presentations and ideas from Germany, Switzerland and Austria online.

The kaleidoscope of ideas and forms should ultimately stimulate the discussion of the directors present. With a view on ANTIGONE, we want to talk about the future of the theatre. This can refer to the audience's attention span, to technical ways of making use of the black box theatre stage, to the relationship between an authentic experience of action on the stage and the presence of the theatre on the Internet, and a lot more.
 

PROGRAM | Day 2: Aesthetic issues
2 PM – 6 PM	6 inspirations for staging Antigone  zoom-link
7:30 PM - 9:45 PM	Antigone – and the Future of Theater Zoom-Link

about the speakers

Nguyên Manh Truờng (*1954, Hanoi)
© Nguyên Mạnh Truờng war Herausgeber der Maison des Éditions littéraires du Viêtnam. Er studierte an der Ecole Normale Supérieure des Langues de Hanoi, am Institut für Interprètes et Traducteurs et des Relations Internationales von Strasburg und an der Universität der Sorbonne Nouvelle -Paris lll. Er arbeitete als Regieassistent des Films INDOCHINE -Théâtre: Cercle de sables, Ti An Antigone-Vietnam.

Marie Bues (*1980)
© FelixGrünschloss is a theatre director and, together with Martina Grohmann, has been artistic director of the Rampe Stuttgart Theater since 2013. She studied acting at the State University for Music and Performing Arts in Stuttgart (2004). She has directed at German-speaking theaters in Basel, Bern, Esslingen, Heidelberg, Graz, Karlsruhe, Lübeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Munich, Osnabrück, Saarbrücken and regularly at the Hanover State Theater.
In her directorial work, Marie Bues deals with new texts and works closely with the authors, very often with Thomas Köck, Felicia Zeller, Anna Gschnitzer and Sivan Ben Yishai.
Link mariebues.de

Nguyen Duc Tu (*1982)
© Nguyễn Đức Tú is a media artist and film director. He exhibited his artistic work in Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea and galleries in Vietnam. He has been involved in the production of films for 12 years and has already received numerous awards.

Quynh Dong (*1982, Hai Phong, Vietnam)
© Hieronymi Katharina is a video artist who also works for theatre. Some of her video works are sculptures. Thematically, Quynh Dong is often concerned with questioning prejudices and cultural stereotypes.
Quynh Dong studied fine arts at the universities of the arts in Bern and Zurich. She graduated with an MFA. Her work has been shown at international exhibitions, art fairs and in major galleries in Amsterdam, Bern, Seoul, Lausanne and Paris, New York. In 2016 she had her first solo exhibition in Hanoi in the Nha San collective. In 2021 her work "sweet Noel" was on view in the Mơ-Art Gallery Hanoi.

Benedikt Brachtel (* 1985)
© Frank Stolle is a composer, musician and music producer based in Munich. 2013 He played as a musician and DJ in Tokyo, Bucharest, Moscow, London, Berlin, Paris, Rome, New York and Los Angeles. Since 2007 he has been the organizer of the annual music residence Selbstversorgersound, which was expanded in 2013 to include the SVS Records label. In 2017 he released a debut album titled Panokorama and an EP titled Bartellow San Ground San. In 2017 he composed the music for the play: Antigone and Oedipus (director: Ersan Mondtag) for the Maxim Gorki Theater, Berlin.

Joachim Gottfried Goller (*1992, Brixen)
© Joachim Gottfried Goller studied history and theatre studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich and theatre directing at the Mozarteum Salzburg (graduation 2021). From 2014-2016 he has worked as a director’s assistant for the Münchner Volkstheater, the music-theatre-festival Münchener Biennale and the Passionstheater Oberammergau. In 2015, he was the managing director of the youth theater club „backstageKlub“ at the Münchner Volkstheater. From 2012 until 2018 he was a member of the leading team of the South Tyrolean theatre initiative Rotierendes Theater. In 2020 his production “Die Herrmannsschlacht” by Heinrich von Kleist was invited to the Körber Studio for Young Directors in Hamburg. Goller currently lives in Salzburg and most recently worked for the Vereinigte Bühnen Bozen and the theatre Dekadenz Brixen.

Christine Grant (*1999)
© Christine Grant is a student of drama at the Mozarteum, Thomas Bernhard Institut, Salzburg.

Maren Soltyn (*1996, Geilenkirchen)
© Maren Solty studied culture anthropology and geography at the university cologne (2016-2018), acting at the Etage Berlin (2018) and since 2019 at the Thomas Bernhard Institute, Mozarteum Salzburg.
 

the directors at the round-table

Bui Nhu Lai
© Bui Nhu Lai graduated from University of Theatre and Cinema. He was recruited by the Youth Theatre in 2002 as actor of Theatre Group 1. After that he received the title of Theatre Young Talent in 2003, as the main character of King Edip, in a play of the same name. Bui Nhu Lai then pursued Theatre Directing (2005 - 2009) and defended his M.A thesis on theatre arts (2010 - 2012). Bui Nhu Lai was considered as a pioneer in exploring contemporary theatre but adding unique elements. He likes to use real life stories to investigate and go further in any issues. The interactivity element is emphasized which created genuine and outstanding material for art creation. He was commented as “a young director who wants to convey the desire to be freed from oppression, violent inequality, and social prejudice, for the disabled, the disadvantaged or ill”. Some important works such as Contemporary drama “Stereo Man and the Destination of Life”, “Stereo man and Emotional Journey”, Interactive Drama “Don’t wait until tomorrow”, Contemporary Drama “Be Yourself” and others.

Tran Luc
© privat started his career as an actor but he is more famous as a film director. He studied at Hanoi University of Theater and Cinema in 1983 and from 1984 to 1990 he studied theatre director at University of Theatre and Cinema Sophia - Bulgaria. As an actor, Tran Luc left a strong impression on the audience through films: My mother-in-law, Red Flower, Lover and husband, Nguyen Ai Quoc in Hong Kong. For film, he recently personified Trịnh Công Sơn. He is highly appreciated both as director and actor. He received numerous prizes. In 2015, Tran Luc established LucTeam Theater Troupe. He has been actively since working with young actors and actresses to create new theatre works such as “The Jealousy of Cinderella” by Moliere, “The Bald Female Singer” and “Quẫn” by Long Chuong.

Ha Nguyen Long
© Ha Nguyen Long is theatre director and scenographer, founder and artistic director of XPLUSX STUDIO. He graduated from the Vietnam School of Fine Arts in Painting and from the ESAT Paris School of Arts and Techniques in Environmental Design.
In 2019-2020, Hà Nguyên Long set up two projects -T.U.Ồ.N.G to help create an anchor for traditional Vietnamese performing arts nationally and internationally and Long Years in Theater with the desire to build a community to learn and practice western theater in Vietnam with an early emphasis on translating and staging western classics. In 2020, Hà Nguyên Long worked as Artistic Director in Sơn Hậu - Beyond the Mountain, a piece inspired by a Traditional Classic of Tuồng taken place in the Văn Chương community square and A Stage Reading of Oresteia by Aeschylus at Manzi Art Space.

Linh Valerie Pham
© Linh Valerie Pham is an experimental theatre and puppetry artist based in Vietnam. She is interested in movement, puppetry, breath, pretty words, ugly words and all things magical. Her aim as an artist is to tell stories in a way that disrupts and destabilizes order. Her works have been showcased at Vicas Studio (Hanoi), A Space (Hanoi), Vincom Center for Contemporary Arts (Hanoi), The Factory Contemporary Arts Center (HCM City), Soul Live Project (HCM City), Brick Theatre (New York), CPR-Center for Performance Research (New York), and HERE Arts Center (New York). She was artist-in-residence at Rimbun Dahan (Malaysia) and a Fellow of Arts for Good Singapore in 2019. Valerie is also the founder and Artistic Director of Mat Tran Ensemble, a performing arts collective with a focus on inclusive and socially-engaged practices.
www.mattranensemble.com

Ha Thuy Hang
© Ha Thuy Hang is a multimedia composer and improviser based in Hanoi. She graduated with a degree in Musicology from Vietnam National Academy of Music in 2015. She studied classical music, and after graduation she devotes herself to contemporary music. She has performed in Vietnam, Italy, Germany, Malta, South Korea, etc. and received numerous national and international awards. Through her arts activities, she has contributed new ideas and created a community of young contemporary artists with similar interests and an interest in learning about Vietnamese indigenous arts and culture. In 2019, Ha Thuy Hang was awarded the title “prominent artist” by Hanoi Grapevine.

Vo Thuy Tien
Foto: © Vincent Nguyen is a visual artist, author, and lecturer. She graduated from Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture. She has made herself a name as a "creative chameleon" whose feminine narratives are dynamic yet also reserved. Tiên works with varied media, namely photography, books, illustration, animation, performance art and film, among which photography is principal. Tiên likes to think that her works don’t contain anything profound but only speak with their forms, materials, and interrelationships. Yet when contrasting them with her personal life, one would recognize a certain extent of resistance towards the norm of her era.

Dang Ha Phuong
© Dang Ha Phuong defended Master Thesis of Theory, History and Criticism of Film at University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam National University Hanoi). Ha Phuong researched the art of using light, camera movement, and the dialogue between images and audiences in cinematography. She has a passion for integrating this expertise into the cinematization of theater. In addition to writing reviews on cultures and arts, making documentary films, Ha Phuong practices intensively painting and dance.

Le Thi Hoa An
© Le Thi Hoa An graduated from the University of Stage and Cinema Ho Chi Minh City with a major in Theatre directing. She has established and is currently managing Saigon Theatreland, which aims at connecting and experimenting independent theatrical projects.

Thien Tu, Tran (*1991)
© Tran Thien Tu is presently working on her Master of Theater Management and Dramatic Literature at The Central Academy of Drama (China). As an actress she participated in several films which received awards.

Amelie Niermeyer (*1965, Bonn)
© Amélie Niermeyer studied directing in Sydney, Bonn and Munich. Her career began at the renowned Residenztheater in Munich. Since then she has worked at the major German-speaking theaters in Basel, Berlin, Frankfurt and Hamburg. Since 2011 she has been professor of directing at the Mozarteum Salzburg, where she heads the drama and directing course at the Thomas Bernhard Institute. She has been directing opera houses for twelve years. She has among others directed Hedda Gabler von Ibsen, Maria Stuart von Schiller, 12th Night of Shakespeare 2014, Wozzeck by Alban Berg, Rigoletto and Otello by Verdi. She has made a name for herself for the reinterpretation male and female roles. In 2019 she took over one of four productions to reinterpret Truyen Kieu for the stage of the Youth Theater, Hanoi.

 

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