The play King Oedipus by the Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema's students will be performed at the 6th Asian Theatre Schools Festival. (Photo courtesy of Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema) The play is staged by director Bui Nhu Lai and features students from theacademy.
"King Oedipus is by Sophocles, who is master of ancientGreek theatre and global theatre as well," said Lai.
"The script is really a challenge for any director and performing artistsbecause of its ideals and the complicated development of the characters,"he said.
As a result, King Oedipus hasnot been staged in Vietnam before, according to the director.
The main themes of the play are fate and free will; the conflictbetween the individual and the state; people’s willingness to ignorepainful truths; and sight and blindness.
The director has modernised the work.
The play focuses on the terrible tragedy of King Oedipus in the process ofconfrontation and determination to find the truth in the curse that hewill kill his father and marry his mother.
Extreme pain is necessary for people to be more mature. It is important thatfrom the deepest parts, man still retains his dignity, his love forhumanity and the world, said the director.
Student Hoang Lam, who plays Oedipus, said that at first he was veryworried when he read the script.
"It requires my experiences in life to fully express theinner role and the main ideals of the play," Lam said.
This is a good chance for the academy's lecturers and students to access andstage the masterpiece, according to the academy's head Nguyen Dinh Thi, who isan Associate Professor and Doctor of Arts.
"The academy management board wants to improve the quality of trainingthrough this work," Thi said.
"We also aim to make the academy one of the leading trainingschools in the region."
AETC is held by Asia Theatre Education Centre which is an institutionfor theatre education and study in China.
The motives and main objectives are to establish an effective network toconnect theatre schools and organisations in Asia and the Pacific, and enhancecommunication on theatre education between different countries and areas in theregions.
It also promotes the development of theatre education, creativity, and researchby providing a communication platform for all students, teachers and researcherswho are devoted to the study and practice of theatre in Asia and the Pacific.
The festival's opening ceremony will be livestreamed at 9pm on May 18./.
VNA
