[Photo] Unique art of painting Tuong masks

Tuong art does not depict reality but depicts ideas, does not go into meticulous details but focuses on depicting the spirit of events and people. "The spirit" is the pinnacle of Tuong performing art. And that beauty is fully revealed in Tuong masks.

Common colors used for mask makeup are white, pink, red, and black.

The art of facial makeup in Tuong is highly symbolic and stylized, mainly based on basic lines and motifs.

Actors, in addition to the ability to sing, dance, and act, must also have the ability to be artists and know how to draw their own faces when assigned to play a role.

Thanks to the makeup, the audience knows the character's psychology, personality, and social class when the actor steps onto the stage.

The colors used in the mask must be very bold and the lines must be very clear to portray the character's personality and increase the expression of the artist's face.

Each artist must do their own makeup based on the rules and standards of character masks, plus the guidance and advice of previous generations.

The main typical feature in the character makeup of Binh Dinh opera, different from Southern opera, is the bird face.

The way to apply mask makeup to characters in Binh Dinh opera is elaborate, with sharp lines. A very special thing is that the actors will apply makeup with two separate hands, on two halves of the face.

Each mask represents a personality, such as loyalty, kindness, cunning, flattery or evil. Each main color tone is associated with a specific character motif.

Tuong masks when made up with colors attract viewers, but when combined with the vivid expressions on the actors' faces, they create a lively work. The way of making up the roles in Tuong helps us understand more about the beauty in the way of making up the faces of the characters in Tuong art.

Excerpt from the scene "Truong Phi sings wine" from the play "Co Thanh" performed by artists of Dao Tan Tuong Troupe.

Tuong art is lacking audiences, lacking successors, lacking a suitable remuneration mechanism to train and retain young artists because training a Tuong artist is very difficult.

The actors of Gia Lai Traditional Arts Theatre in general and Dao Tan Tuong Troupe in particular still try to stick with it and overcome every ups and downs. They keep their passion for the profession, their love, their loyalty to this traditional art form in accordance with its original color and spirit.

THUY NGUYEN - TUAN DUNG

Source: https://nhandan.vn/anh-doc-dao-nghe-thuat-ve-mat-na-tuong-post922988.html