About
Ascent to the Bamboo Forest – A Dance Travelogue offers an intimate glimpse into the rarely seen highlands of Northern Vietnam, unfolding as a poetic exploration of landscape, culture, and memory. Developed from a 2025 performance-lecture, ARTS FISSION dancers Aisha Lozano, Marveen Lozano, Andine Elaina, and Ignatius Sim, under the guidance of Angela Liong, refine their movement language into a triptych that reflects their lived experiences among mountain communities. The work meditates on a deep respect for nature, the authenticity of communal rituals, and the richness of Traditional Ecological Knowledge. Complementing this, composer Chua Jon-Lin introduces a dynamic soundscape where dancers become musicians, creating live rhythms using bamboo and natural elements that move in harmony with the choreography. Together, the piece invites audiences into a transformed space, revealing a quiet, fragile beauty and an ancestral way of life that stands on the edge of disappearance.
