“A Wo|man” is a contemporary dance play responding to the Goethe Institute’s call for innovative performances, which is based on classic Sophocles’ Greek play Antigon.

The contemporary dance entitled “A Wo|man” will be performed by artists from Vietnam National Opera & Ballet. Photo: Hoang Bach

The contemporary dance will be performed at 8pm on January 8 at Vietnam National Opera & Ballet (No 11 Nui Truc Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi). It is necessary to book tickets for the show in advance.

“A Wo|man” dance will be performed by renowned Vietnamese dancers Hoang Ha, Tran Minh Hai, Tran Minh, among others with the music directed by Ian Richter.

Antigone of Greek mythology is likened to the Kieu tale of Vietnam. Through the contemporary dance that is telling about Antigone’s story, women from all over the world can find the answers to the questions of “What can a human being do when fate has been arranged? Even if it is a tragedy, how will a person proceed in the journey to her own foreknown death?”

According to the organizer, with new experiences in approaching the original play and adapting it in the form of contemporary dance, “A Wo|man” wishes to discover and expand the dimensions of “Antigone”, the story that dates back 2,500 years through the points of view of the present.

Through the movements of the body, the dance shows struggles inside the soul of Antigone. Photo: Hoang Bach

The story of Antigone was written by Sophocles in the 5th century BC. Antigone belongs to the family of Oedipus, and the story revolves around the scramble of her two brothers who both want the crown.

Both die in battle, and King Creon decides that the brother who protected the city must be buried, while the other brother, who attacked the city, is not worthy of a grave. 

But when Antigone defied the king and buried her brother, she was sentenced to death.

The contemporary dance “A Wo|man” is about this ever-recurrent conflict between positive law and natural law, between authority and universal order. It exposes the dangers of absolute rule and implies that there must be an alternative order to tyranny.