LANG TOI MY VILLAGE NOUVEAU CIRQUE DU VIETNAM 8 17 FEB 2019 REGAL THEATRE AUSTRALIAN EXCLUSIVE VIETNAM. Image: Nguyen Duc Minh

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1 Image: Nguyen Duc Minh VIETNAM NOUVEAU CIRQUE DU VIETNAM LANG TOI MY VILLAGE 8 17 FEB 2019 REGAL THEATRE AUSTRALIAN EXCLUSIVE International Excellence Partner

2 Image: Nguyen Duc Minh LANG TOI MY VILLAGE REGAL THEATRE Fri 8 Feb Sat 9 Feb Sun 10 Feb Tue Fri Feb Sat 16 Feb Sun 17 Feb Duration 70mins 7pm 2pm & 7pm 1pm & 6pm 7pm 2pm & 7pm 1pm & 6pm Post Show Conversation Sat 16 Feb 3.10pm Wheelchair accessible Please note: Contains strobe lighting Perth Festival acknowledges that our events take place on the lands of the Noongar people. LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO DO AFTER THE SHOW? Wind up or down and grab a drink and bite to eat with artists, friends and strangers at our Festival hubs. CHEVRON GARDENS at Elizabeth Quay Kick back under the stars to enjoy late-night DJ tunes Thursday Sunday. BAR UNDERGROUND Venture down below at the State Theatre Centre and slide into the late-night world of Perth Festival open every night until late.

3 Image: Nguyen Duc Minh CREDITS Created by Tuan Le, Nguyen Nhat Ly & Nguyen Lân Maurice Director Tuan Le Musical Director Nguyen Nhat Ly Artistic Director Nguyen Lân Maurice Choreographer Nguyen Tan Loc Circus troop leader Nguyen Van Dung Acrobats Dinh Thi Loan, Nguyen Linh Chi, Nguyen Thi An, Nguyen Thi Diem Loan, Nguyen Thi Hoa, Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, Trang Thu Ngan, Luu Van Cuong, Nguyen Duc Truong, Nguyen Khac Thanh, Nguyen Quang Tho, Nguyen Thanh Dat, Pham Manh Hung, Pham Thanh Duong, Vu Duc Long Musicians Le Duy, Nguyen Minh Chi, Pham Van Doanh, Pham Van Ty Technical Director Nguyen Duy Chan Lighting Technician Tran Ngoc Dung Sound Technician Le Viet Tuan Stage Technician Sam Minh Duc Catering Nguyen Phuong Quynh Producer Nguyen Anh Phuong Produced by Lune Production The illusion of a village life work in the paddy fields, feasts, games through a circus language borrowing from dance and theatre. Nguyen Nhat Ly, Co-Creator & Musical Director

4 A BACKGROUND NOTE TO LANG TOI In August 2005, a Vietnamese circus artist working in France returned home to lead a masterclass at the National Circus School in Hanoi. His work over three weeks gave him the idea for a new type of circus show and he called on two other expat circus experts for some help. The three brothers Nguyen Lân Maurice and Nguyen Nhat Ly and friend Tuan Le worked intensively together with more than 80 artists from the Vietnamese Circus Federation and some musicians from the Vietnamese Theatre, and in just three weeks the very first version of Lang Toi (My Village) was born. Lang Toi is a contemporary multicultural creation, which draws its inspiration from traditional Vietnamese arts and the European new circus style, in which traditional circus techniques are used to tell a character-driven story. In this case circus performers and musicians share their cultural roots as they portray a story of daily life in a Vietnamese village. The three creators called their company Nouveau Cirque du Vietnam (new Vietnamese circus) and this new style of circus performance they have created reveals the different influences on Vietnamese acrobatics from the Chinese circus tradition, as well as the French and Russian influences before and after Vietnam s Independence. There are also ingredients of modern western circus styles and contemporary theatre thrown in. The result is something that Vietnamese audiences took a while to warm to, but that became an overnight sensation in Paris. This unusual circus show has now toured the world for nearly 10 years and the company has become Vietnam s most recognisable cultural export. At the same time Nouveau Cirque du Vietnam have grown their repertoire and have built permanent homes for their work in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Hoi An. The whole show could have been called Dance around bamboo since it all started with this essential element. In the past, everything was linked to bamboo, from life to death, from the building of a table to gathering food to carrying essentials, explains Tuan Le, who is in charge of staging the show. I wanted to import these symbols. Bamboo is the central element of the show s set and is used throughout the performance not only as set decoration but also for props. The artists manipulate bamboo poles up to 4.5 metres long and use the canes as instruments for juggling, performing contortions, balancing on and tumbling from. These manipulations are one of the most powerful and moving things about this show, with each of the performers weaving their poles to create varied images. It is the illusion of a village life work in the paddy fields, feasts, games through a circus language borrowing from dance and theatre, says Nguyen Nhat Ly, who is in charge of the musical composition. Original music, drawing from a variety of Vietnamese ethnic groups, is the soul of the Lang Toi experience. A four-piece orchestra provides live accompaniment to the storytelling with a soundtrack inspired by traditional Vietnamese music. It is a traditional captivating sound, with percussion, played on ancient instruments by four musicians who improvise following the movement of the performers, composer Ngyuen explains. Through the universal art of circus, vibrating to the sounds of ancestral instruments (drums, flute, zither, threestrineds lute, jew s harp) and coloured with traditional costumes, Lang Toi (My Village) gives us a spectacular insight into a unique culture. Lang Toi was initially considered unusual circus because it didn t feature things that were traditionally part of a circus in Vietnam. Instead of jugglers, clowns and animals there were acrobats, singers and musicians and a series of scenes played out seamlessly one after the other without a break, telling a story.

5 Acrobats, singers and musicians and a series of scenes played out seamlessly one after the other without a break, telling a story. Image: Nguyen Anh Phuong

6 BIOGRAPHIES Tuan Le Creator & Director Tuan Le started his stage career with juggling at the age of six under his brother s coaching. At 14 he moved to Berlin and soon after joined Ufa Fabrik as a juggling artist. His achievements include winning the Stuttgart Talent Competition in 1997 and being the Gold Medal Winner at European Youth Circus Festival in Wiesbaden in He is the first and only Vietnamese artist to sign a long-term contract with Cirque du Soleil as a solo artist and to perform at Broadway Beacon Theater New York City and Toronto Cannon Theater. Nguyen Nhat Ly Creator & Musical Director He is also the first Asian to receive the Award of Excellence from the International Jugglers Association. He has created many acclaimed shows including Dinner & Dreams for Teatro Zinzanni and Banana Shpeel for Cirque du Soleil. One of his most recent works was choreographing for Toruk, Cirque du Soleil s Avatar-inspired production. Le is the co-founder of Nouveau Cirque du Vietnam and sees his shows embodying Vietnamese culture (Lang Toi, AO Show and The Dar) as his most important works. Nguyen Nhat Ly was born in France but spent his childhood in Vietnam. He holds a Bachelor Degree of Music from Paris VIII University. He was one of the two founders of Art Ensemble, an organisation that educates Asian children about traditional music. He was part of the organising committee for the Cities of Ethnic Music Festival on the outskirts of Paris from Considering himself as having more Vietnamese than French blood, Nguyen has a special love for the rich culture and heritage of Vietnam. He has been involved in several collaborations celebrating this love including Lang Toi, Gio Binh Minh (Wind of the dawn) and Trao Doi (Exchange), which have earned him praise from both local and international critics. He brought to Lang Toi, A O Show, The Mist and Teh Dar the mesmerising sounds of both traditional and contemporary musical instruments, performed live by talented musicians. He created a music lab studio, Phusa Lab, near the West Lake in Hanoi and has started Seaphony, the first symphonic orchestra with traditional instruments in Vietnam. Nguyen Lân Maurice Creator & Artistic Director Born in France (like his brother Nguyen Nhat Ly), Nguyen Lân Maurice spent his childhood in Vietnam where he trained at the National Circus School. When the family moved back to France in 1985, he started to perform with Cirque Plume before becoming artistic director of circus school Arc en Cirque in Chambéry, France. He was invited to give a three-week masterclass back at the National Circus School in Hanoi where he worked with nine groups of 10 performers each, asking everyone to invent a new show every week. Out of this he developed the idea for a cultural show, and with the support of Tuan Le and Nguyen Nhat Ly the very first version of Lang Toi was conceptualised. As training director on this and subsequent shows, A O Lang Pho and Teh Dar, Nguyen has been on a quest to create art from a place of no preconceptions. His mission is to work with artists and in a sense to brainwash them from their past habits and routines so that he can nurture their creativity and innovation.

7 PERTH FESTIVAL perthfestival.com.au Artistic Director Wendy Martin Executive Director Nathan Bennett Perth Festival Board Chair John Barrington REGAL THEATRE Regal Theatre Foundation Members Richard V Diggins, Lisa Hando, Ian Lyon, Warren Kerr, Stella Familton Manager Kim Knight innovation starts with inspiration chevron is a proud sponsor of perth festival Every community needs inspiration. And the arts have the ability to truly inspire. Chevron is committed to supporting world-class cultural experiences where we operate. Because an inspired community is a great place to call home. Learn more at australia.chevron.com Photo by Nguyen Anh Phuong. CHEVRON, the CHEVRON Hallmark and HUMAN ENERGY are registered trademarks of Chevron Intellectual Property LLC Chevron Australia Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

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