A Physical Theatre “Mahabharata” by Hiroshi Koike

Tue 16 Jul 2013, 7.30 pm
Youth Theatre

From Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam:

In celebration of 40th Year of ASEAN – Japan Friendship and Cooperation as well as the Japan – Vietnam Friendship Year 2013, the Hiroshi Koike Bridge Project, Cambodia’s Amrita Performing Arts and the Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam, sponsored by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs, proudly present a physical theatre “Mahabharata” on Tuesday 16 July 2013 in Hanoi.

Mahabharata is an ancient Indian epic originally written in Sanskrit and has been regarded as the Hindu Bible, the resource of Indian philosophy, moral, politics and law. It is the story of a dynastic struggle that provides a social, moral and cosmological background to the climactic battle and covers all categories of storytelling, as the famous phrase in Mahabharata says:

What is found herein may also be found in other sources,
What is not found herein does not matter.

This gigantic epic is, thus, a treasure house of ancient wisdom and can be an excellent reference to think about human nature, which motivated Hiroshi Koike, a highly revered Japanese director, to bring on stage.

The characters in the story will be performed mainly by Cambodian actors/actresses equipped with traditional dance, backed up by a Japanese Bali dancer, a Japanese Ballet dancer and a Malaysian Butoh dancer. Each performer will play several roles by changing wearing masks. The story will be delivered mainly through physical movements topped with some music and summary of the story on screen.

We do hope that Hiroshi Koike’s ambitious attempt will inspire you not only in purely artistic sense but also to re-think about what is human nature.

This stage performance is free admission but you are required to get free advanced tickets which will be distributed from 2pm on Friday 28 June at the Japan Foundation (27 Quang Trung, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi/TEL 04-3944-7419) .

For more information, please visit Japan Foundation’s website.