SWISS CHINESE CULTURAL EXPLORATIONS
The question of origin and social affiliation is one of the central political and cultural phenomena of present-day life which profoundly change our ways of human coexistence. For Simone and Monika Truong – born and raised in Solothurn, daughters of Chinese parents, who lived in Vietnam as “overseas” Chinese before finding their way to Switzerland after fleeing Vietnam in 1978 – these are common questions. Their works as choreographers, dancers and performance artists thus reflect the question of one´s own identity. Overseas is a multidisciplinary event which combines video and performance. It began in 2009 in a vacant traditional Chinese Courtyard (siheyuan) in Beijing within the framework of an artist community and has now been adapted to the abstract form of the Black Box in an empty theatre hall. The audience plays a central role in the play, being the observed object as well as the voyeur. Overseas 2010 discusses relationships between people which are influenced by our longing for belonging and the self-assertion of every individual – an interactive exchange of experiences with foreign cultures.
A Coproduction with theTHEATERHAUS GESSNERALLEE ZÜRICH
