HBSO dancers Hồ Phi Điệp and Nguyễn Thu Trang perform in the ballet Carmen Suite created by Cuban choreographer Alberto Alonso. Photo courtesy of HBSO

HCM CITY – The HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) will stage contemporary dances and a classical ballet choreographed by Vietnamese and international artists at the HCM City Opera House on July 20 and 21.

Vietnamese choreographer Nguyễn Phúc Hùng's contemporary dance Falling Angels reveals the challenges faced by Việt Nam's LGBT community in today's society.

The work will feature dancers Đỗ Hoàng Khang Ninh and Sùng A Lùng, who won the Gold Medal at the 2016 National Young Choreographer Talent Competition and provided the concept for the dance.

Hùng, a graduate in choreography from the Fontys Dance Academy in Netherlands, is general director in charge of HBSO's programmes.

He has choreographed contemporary dances Những Mảnh Ghép Của Giấc Mơ  (Dream Puzzles), Chạm Tay Vào Quá Khứ (Touching the Past), Đi Qua Tình Yêu (Gone through Love) and Lub qhov rooj (The Door).

He has also worked with choreographers, theatre directors and artists from Norway, Germany, France and South Korea to stage classic ballets and contemporary dances in HCM City.

French choreographer Julien Guerin’s ballet Dépaysement, based on the music of Chopin, Satie, Faure, Beethoven and Albioni, will also be performed.

The dance is about a spiritual journey of a young woman who has a dream of sharing her feelings with other people.

It will feature HBSO dancers Yuki Hiroshige, Trần Hoàng Yến, Nguyễn Thu Trang, Hà Khánh Vy, Thạch Hiểu Lăng, Hồ Phi Điệp, Đàm Đức Nhuận, and Nguyễn Minh Tâm.

Guerin began studying dance at the La Rochelle Conservatory in France at age 9, and completed his training at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris.

After receiving degree as a ballet teacher from the Centre National de la Danse de Paris in 2005, Guerin joined a number of ballet troupes, including the English National Ballet and the Ballet of the National Opera of Bordeaux.

He has created and choreographed several ballets such as Somina Vertigo and Beaudelarieans Souls.

The classical ballet Carmen Suite, created in 1967 by Cuban choreographer Alberto Alonso to music by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin, will be performed after the intermission.

The ballet is based on French composer Georges Bizet’s opera Carmen, depicting the tragedy of Carmen, a fiery gypsy, who falls in love with Don José.

The performance will be staged by People’s Artist Kim Quy, one of the country’s leading choreographers and vice president of the Việt Nam Dancing Artists Association.

The dance will feature Trang as Carmen, Điệp as Don José, and dancers from HBSO’s ballet department.

The event on both nights will begin at 8pm. The Opera House is at 7 Lam Sơn Square in District 1. Tickets are available at the venue and at www.ticketbox.vn. VNS