Traditional Vietnamese opera for Tet Binh Ngo: Fewer but higher quality

This year, while the theater scene was bustling with activity during the Lunar New Year of the Horse, the traditional Vietnamese opera (cải lương) scene seemed rather subdued. The number of performances was quite small, and most were simply remakes of old scripts.

The play "Gánh cải trạng nguyên" features many cải lương stars such as Tú Sương, Quế Trân, Võ Minh Lâm... - Photo: LINH ĐOAN

However, the upside is that, though few in number, there will likely be some plays that are predicted to be of high quality, satisfying the thirst of cải lương (Vietnamese traditional opera) lovers.

Colorful Tet Cai Luong (Vietnamese traditional opera)

In previous years, the Tran Huu Trang Theater, the "capital" of Cai Luong (Vietnamese traditional opera) in Ho Chi Minh City, was extremely busy due to the high demand for performances during the Tet holiday from various troupes.

However, this year, the sparse performance schedule surprised many. While theaters were bustling with activity from the 1st to the 13th of the lunar month, the Cai Luong (Vietnamese traditional opera) scene, including the Hong Lien theater, only managed to stage 4 or 5 plays.

Traditional Vietnamese opera performances for Tet (Lunar New Year) don't begin until the 8th day of the lunar month. The most popular is the Huynh Long Troupe with their adaptation of the classic opera "The Emperor's Spring Excursion" by the late artist Bach Mai, directed by artist Huu Quoc, performed on the 8th and 9th at the Hong Lien Theater.

As usual, from the old script, Huu Quoc had to "create" nearly twenty additional characters to accommodate the actors of Huynh Long's troupe in the Tet play. The play tells the story of an emperor who only cares about the country and neglects the harem, causing the Empress Dowager to anxiously urge him to travel around in the hope of finding a suitable wife.

Thai Vinh and Binh Tinh are the lead actors and actresses in the play "The Emperor Goes on a Spring Trip" - Photo: LINH DOAN

With about half a month left until the performance, tickets for the 8th show are already sold out, and more than half of the tickets for the 9th show are already gone. "The Emperor's Spring Excursion" promises to be another "sold-out" performance for Huynh Long this Tet holiday.

The performance on the 8th at the Tran Huu Trang Theater began with the theater's second troupe presenting the historical Cai Luong play "Phuoc Loc Tho" by playwright Hoang Song Viet, directed by artist Dien Trung. The play features the participation of Le Tu, Vo Minh Lam, Le Hong Tham, Lam Tuyen, Thy Trang, Ha Nhu, Le Thanh Thao, and others.

On the 10th, the troupe will restage the play " A Spring Night's Dream ." This is a play the troupe performed during last year's commemoration of the founding of Vietnamese theater, and it's being performed again this Tet season. The cast includes Thanh Ngan, Nguyen Van Khoi, Vo Thanh Phe, Thu Van, My Hang, Nguyen Thanh Toan, and others.

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The play " A Spring Night's Dream " by Tran Huu Trang Theatre - Photo: LINH DOAN

Circus and water puppet shows increase performance frequency.

This year's Lunar New Year, the city's circus's trump card is the circus show "Memories of the Fire God - A Prequel to the Mysterious Land ".

The play has been performed sporadically before Tet and is expected to impress audiences just as much as "The Mysterious Land" did last year during the Tet season.

According to the schedule, from the 1st to the 6th of the month at the Gia Dinh Park Circus, the show will have 10 performances for the audience.

Memories of the Fire God - The Mysterious Land Prequel is the flagship show of Ho Chi Minh City Circus this Tet season - Photo: LINH DOAN

Meanwhile, water puppetry also takes advantage of the Lunar New Year season to have more performances. From the 1st to the 6th day of the Lunar New Year, there are as many as 16 shows for the audience.

The chosen program is a historical water puppet show. The legend of Yet Kieu aims to provide viewers with both entertainment and additional information about the famous general Yet Kieu.

These Cai Luong plays celebrate Tet… late.

While some troupes take advantage of the peak days from the 1st to the 13th of the lunar month to perform, others, due to scheduling conflicts with performers or other reasons, choose to celebrate Tet later.

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Among them, one can mention the play "Gánh cải trạng nguyên" by the Dai Viet New Cai Luong Theatre, which only premiered to the audience at the Tran Huu Trang Theatre on the 19th of January.

The Cai Luong play "Loi Vu" by artist Vu Luan is scheduled to meet audiences on January 26th.

Due to the limited number of Cai Luong plays, ticket sales at various venues have been relatively smooth this year. Some venues, even before performances, have almost sold out tickets, such as Dai Viet New Cai Luong Stage and Chi Linh - Van Ha Stage…

LINH DOAN

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cai-luong-tet-binh-ngo-it-nhung-chat-20260212153115134.htm