Hanoi, Vietnam

***Món quà từ những mảnh nhỏ* */ Small pieces, a gift***

Hanoi, Vietnam 22-30 June 2012

Fragments of stories, wrapped in the skin of Australian dancers, unfurled in spaces unique and diverse in the summer heat of Hanoi, Vietnam. Some of the short dance pieces offered intergenerational dialogue through movement vocabulary spoken at times in whispers; at times a shout. Some works integrated film of the Aussie outback with music by Australian composers. One particular piece explored the juxtaposition of spoken Vietnamese text with movement phrases, while playing with gauzy fabric: snatches of English words stitched in black thread that dangled from bodies moving, then still.

The Remnant Dance artists offered what they had of themselves, but in giving received a greater gift: that of the Vietnamese experience. It was not just the warm hospitality of the Vietnamese people, the standing ovation at the premiere or the extraordinary collaboration between artists who did not speak the same language. It was not just the ancient gift of a tea ceremony in the office of the Vietnam Youth Theatre Vice-Director of Performing Arts and International Cooperation, or the delight of a young girl who joined in the dance at the performance at Hanoi Rock City.. or the questions from three different television journalists who showed genuine interest in the cultural exchange. It was not even attracting audiences in the 100s, the privilege of meeting with Australian Embassy staff, the delight in discovering fabric in markets, or the joy of a professional photo shoot on the streets on Hanoi.. that enlarged our capacity to receive..

It was the gift of the invitation to return that stopped us in our tracks: humbled, grateful. We gave small pieces: fragments of stories. In return we encountered Vietnam in ways that have moved and inspired us as artists: as people. We are truly honoured to be able to accept the gift of the invitation to return to Vietnam. We hope to do so in 2013 and celebrate the 40^th anniversary of the diplomatic relationship between Australia and Vietnam.