15 years from My Village to GOm show, Dan Do group nurtures the dream of Vietnamese indigenous culture

The Dan Do artist group dreams of bringing Vietnamese indigenous culture to the modern stage. They have been making it a reality for the past 15 years and the latest achievement is the GOm show.

The Dan Do group and musicians chat with the audience after the GOm show in Ho Chi Minh City on the evening of July 19 - Photo: MI LY

Since 2009, a group of circus artists met and found common ground during the circus tour of My Village through European countries. During 4 years of performing, they were exposed to many interesting and strange things from multinational art forms, and nurtured in themselves the dream of bringing Vietnamese indigenous culture to the modern stage.

After 15 years, their new achievement is GOm show - musical instruments made from bamboo, earth, ceramic, water; shows that make the audience unable to take their eyes off because of the uniqueness of music , sound, and simple stage design but honoring the beauty of Vietnamese culture.

From My Village to GOm show

The Dan Do group includes Dinh Anh Tuan (director, visual director), Nguyen Duc Minh (author, art director), Nguyen Quang Su (creative director and performance space curator) and a group of young artists who brought the GOm show from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City. The music night made the audience applaud loudly many times.

The unique sounds from the jar drum - the largest musical instrument in the program, to the bamboo flute, rotating ang, nieu, gong, and lang drum truly surprised the audience with the primitive vibrations of Vietnamese indigenous materials and culture.

The artists of GOm show excitedly interacted with the audience in Ho Chi Minh City - Photo: MI LY

With the jar drum, the group of artists used motorbike tires, a very cheap material, to make the rubber part of the jar drum. During the exchange, the audience heard artist Nguyen Quang Su play an impromptu piece on the jar drum.

Ceramics - the main material of GOm show - is not only the material used to make musical instruments but also the bridge connecting people and the earth, just like the idea of the group of authors.

Artist Dinh Anh Tuan confided to the audience about the journey of the Dan Do group: "Bamboo and earth have connected my brothers and I, holding hands together to get to where we are today.

Not difficult, but very difficult. Because what we do does not have immediate visible results. Family, relatives, friends... see that we are not normal, only focusing on work, investing in work whenever we have money.

The invisible thread has helped the brothers share all the sweet and bitter things for 15 years. We want to share with the young people here about the spirit of behavior at work, between ourselves and nature and values. That is more than a program. That is a spirit that we want to bring GOm far."

GOm show trailer

Will perform regularly in Hanoi, in the future in Ho Chi Minh City

In response to the audience’s concerns about the work, artist Nguyen Duc Minh explained that the artists had worked very seriously, from meeting artisans on field trips, as well as inviting artisans to work in Hanoi. They once did a project to invite 50 artisans from all over to work in Hanoi for a year.

The Dan Do Group passes on its love of indigenous culture to young artists - Photo: MI LY

The Dan Do Group was fortunate to meet young artists with a love for local music and traditional culture. They brought a new breeze and youthful energy to the program, creating spontaneously while practicing, which artist Nguyen Duc Minh then gathered and systematized into chapters and complete works.

At the end of the program, the young artists were excited and moved when sharing their connection through music.

They are musicians who were trained in school and books, but when they came to the GOm show, they discovered completely different ways of playing music, with instruments not available in school.

To create cohesion on stage through performances, artists also connect in real life.

On stage, their talents blend and take the audience on a "time travel" from Quay ve, Thoi do, Xuoi dong, Tim Hani, Thau dat, Con nuoc, Hoa bien, GO...m.

It is a seamless, uninterrupted journey, without the need for spoken word, yet the audience still feels the story told through music.

To bring the GOm show to Ho Chi Minh City, the artists and crew spent 9 months preparing. The artists announced that the GOm show - like My Village - will have regular performances at a small theater in the center of Hanoi, 2 to 3 times a week, from now until early next year.

After a period of stable operation in Hanoi, the crew will bring the program to perform periodically in Ho Chi Minh City, but the plan will be announced later.

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MI LY

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/15-nam-tu-lang-toi-den-gom-show-nhom-dan-do-nuoi-uoc-mo-van-hoa-ban-dia-viet-20250720064700943.htm