Renowned choreographer Arthur Pita gave a talk at TNUA on March 30 about “The Little Match Girl,” a work he created in 2013 based on Hans Christian Andersen’s famous tale.

Pita, who grew up and learned dancing in South Africa, is currently based in Britain. He has created many dances for Sadlers’ Wells Theatre and The Royal Ballet.

His critically acclaimed “The Metamorphosis,” which is based on Franz Kafka’s novel, has won various awards, including the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance, the Southbank SkyArts award and the Critics Circle National Dance award.

“The Little Match Girl” was an instant hit when it was launched in 2013, incorporating dancing and singing in a reinterpretation of Andersen’s tale. The performance ran for three weeks at Sadler’s Wells.

During his talk, Mr. Pita showed video clips of the works he created at different times, and explained them to the audience.

He said he has been eager to experiment with different elements in his dances. He said when he was asked to create a family piece for Christmas, he got inspiration from Andersen’s “The Little Match Girl,” but turned it into a story highlighting festivities rather than the sadness in the original tale.

He said his dance carries magical elements that make it end in a very different way from the original tale. When the girl lights her last match, she sees her grandma and follows her to the moon, where an astronauts is stuck. She uses the match to help restart the spaceship, which in turn sends her back to her warm family.