Houston, Texas, July 28, 2016 — This August, Oscar-nominated and Emmy Award-winning composer Vân-Ánh Võ and the VA’V Quartet will perform the regional premiere of The Odyssey—From Vietnam to America, a musical exploration of the personal and spiritual journeys of Vietnam’s “Boat People.” Through traditional Vietnamese music, new western music, ambient sound recordings, spoken word, and video, The Odyssey expresses the unimaginable suffering and will to survive of those who fled Vietnam in crowded boats after the Vietnam War.

In researching the stories of these refugees, Võ travelled across Vietnam for two months and interviewed more than 50 people across the U.S., including Houston. The interviews and field recordings serve as the guiding force behind the multi-media performance. The layers of sounds, music, and visual elements weave together the emotional journey of the Boat People that parallels the collective human experience. “I want the audience to experience the odyssey and triumph of the Boat People, feel the universal emotions of their own life challenges, and relate to their own struggles and sacrifices,” says Võ.

The Odyssey—From Vietnam to America will be presented Saturday, August 27 at 8:00 pm at Miller Outdoor Theatre, 6000 Hermann Park Drive Houston, TX. The performance is free and open to the public. Assigned seating is available, and details on how to obtain tickets, and other information about seating, can be found at MillerOutdoorTheatre.com. For more information about the performance, please visit AsiaSociety.org/Texas or call 713.496.9901.

About Vân-Ánh Võ

Vân-Ánh Võ is an internationally renowned performer of Vietnamese traditional instruments and a rapidly emerging composer. She dedicates her life to creating music by blending the wonderfully unique sounds of Vietnamese instruments with other music genres, and fusing deeply rooted Vietnamese musical traditions with fresh new structures and compositions.

In 1995, Võ won the championship title in the Vietnamese National Đàn Tranh (Zither) Competition. Since settling in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2001, she has focused on collaborating with musicians across different music genres to create new works, bringing Vietnamese traditional music to a wider audience and preserving her cultural legacy through teaching.

About Asia Society Texas Center

With 12 locations throughout the world, Asia Society is the leading educational organization promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among the peoples, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the west. Asia Society Texas Center executes the global mission with a local focus, enriching and engaging the vast diversity of Houston through innovative, relevant programs in arts and culture, business and policy, education, and community outreach.

Download the press release here.