Musical play "The little prince" to take place in Hanoi

The event, which will be jointly organised by Hanoi Opera House in collaboration with the French Embassy and the French Institute in Vietnam, is part of activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Vietnam-France diplomatic relations (April 12, 1973 - 2023) and 10 years of their strategic partnership (2013 - 2023).

The programme will be performed in combination with illustrations by artist Joann Sfar. This is also the first time the famous work has been shown in the form of a musical combined with visual arts in Vietnam. The Vietnam Symphony Orchestra will perform under the direction of conductor Marc - Oliver Dupin, along with the participation of artist Hua Thanh Tu.

According to French Ambassador Nicolas Warnery, the show, composed by French composer Marc-Olivier Dupin, promises to give this legendary work a modern nuance and fresh energy, while fully conveying the spirit of the book's author Saint-Exupéry.

He emphasised: "The little prince is a unique, compact yet philosophical narrative that gracefully addresses the great questions of human life, such as love, death and destiny".

Speaking at a press conference held on June 20, composer Marc-Olivier Dupin shared that he was excited to present his work to local and international audiences in Hanoi.

"The musical play is a wonderful combination of three essential art forms: music, dialogue and painting. The illustrations shown on the big screen are not static like a slide show or too vivid like movies. They are a combination of the two," he said.

"The little prince" or "Le Petit Prince" was written and illustrated by  Antoine de Saint Exupéry. It was first published in English and French in the US in 1943. The year 2023 marks the 80th anniversary of the birth of the story. “The little prince” is the third most-read literary work in the world and translated into nearly 250 languages, including Vietnamese.