An important step in the recent cultural history of Vietnam was taken when one of the first contemporary dance pieces to visit the country was performed in Ha Noi. Held in October 2009, the performance was staged at the historical relic and public park in the south east of the city called the Go Dong Da mound, which also marked it as the first site-specific performance in Vietnam’s history.

The performance, titled Huhmmm, was directed and conceived by British artist Kwesi Johnson from Kompany Malakhi and Vietnam’s +84 Contemporary Dance Group alongside dancers from Viet Bac Folk Song & Dance Theatre. The final piece was steeped in ritual and combined traditional art forms with modern technologies such as film.

Developed over two visits to Vietnam in June and October 2009, Huhmmm is an exploration of the past, present and the future of the two groups who come from very different cultures, art styles and languages.

This dance project is part of the British Council’s artistic regional programme, Creative Cities. It aims at celebrating and giving voice to the communities of the cities of East Asia, China and the UK through performances, workshops and collaborative projects.

You can watch excerpts from Huhmmm on YouTube here.