Phở - Play

The first stage of Phở - Play was initiated by Cuong Phu Le of the Casula Powerhouse, to follow the highly controversial “I love Pho” exhibition. The Australia Council supported a writing development process with two Vietnamese writers from Melbourne (Chi Vu, David Cuong Nguyen), a performance poet/artist from Sydney (Le Van Tai), multimedia artist/composer/musician from Hanoi (Vu Nhat Tan), and a filmmaker from Sydney (Binh Truong). The process was facilitated by Vietnamese writer/performer Binh Ta and directed by Australian Performance Exchange Artistic Director, Sally Sussman. The workshop concluded with a showing for invited audience at the Casula Powerhouse theatre. Eleanor Clapham and Tek Kim-Pok  performed a selection of material generated by the artists, including the filming of well known Vitenamese chef,  Angie Hong preparing the stock, followed by the serving of a bowl of Phở to each member of the audience.

The piece requires a further dramaturgical process to shape the material for performance in a restaurant or a cabaret set-up. Following APE’s first foray into food and performance in a restaurant setting, Season to Taste, APE is in discussion with partners to present Phở - Play, as a sumptuous feast of phở and philosophy, playful stories and master-chef.

Project details
In development, proposed for 2013.