HCMC – French physical theatre meets traditional Vietnamese sounds in “Bulle”, a cross-cultural performance directed and performed by French artist Léo Barcet, with live đàn tranh accompaniment by Vietnamese musician Ngoc Hang Nguyen.
Staged at Dancenter in HCMC, “Bulle” (meaning “Bubble” in French) invites the audience into an immersive 45-minute experience where sound, light, and movement merge to explore themes of loneliness, connection, and the fragile beauty of human beings.
There is no clear boundary between stage and audience. The audience is drawn into an intimate dialogue between the performer and the musician—between stillness and motion, sound and silence. Through minimalist stage design—a man, a bucket of water, and the sound of the đàn tranh.
“When you understand there’s nothing to do but feel – that’s when you begin to be true,” said Léo Barcet, a French actor, director and playwright who also performs under the stage name Charli Bar.
Barcet, founder of the French theatre company Les Lions sous la Lune, is known for works that blend philosophy, humor, and immersive storytelling. He wrote “Bulle” as a personal exploration of inner connection and emotional truth.
In Saigon, Barcet collaborated with đàn tranh artist Ngoc Hang Nguyen, who is also a dancer and choreographer with over a decade of experience in the performing arts. She described the project as “an opportunity to weave the delicate dialogue between movement and the sound of the đàn tranh.”
For Barcet, the traditional Vietnamese instrument embodies “both gentleness and strength—like the Vietnamese soul itself.” The collaboration, he said, represents not only a fusion of artistic forms but also a meeting point of cultures, where emotion becomes a shared language.
As the final notes of the đàn tranh fade, “Bulle” leaves audiences with an open question—how to reconnect with themselves and others in a world filled with invisible boundaries.
