"Golden girl" of Vietnamese circus: After retiring from human circus, she will switch to animal circus

These days, the Central Circus continuously performs a special program, called “ Hanoi in my heart.” The stands are more than 60% full, not only with families bringing their children to watch, but also with young teenagers.

Many acts have competed abroad and have been brought back to perform for Vietnamese audiences. Among them are Acrobatics on a Pole and Four-Women’s Conical Hat Swing, two acts that have won a gold and a silver medal at the international circus festival, respectively. What is even more special is that both have the participation of the “golden girl” of the Nung ethnic group in Lang Son - Meritorious Artist Lo Thi Ngoc Thuy.

150% effort

Russian bar acrobatics is both Ngoc Thuy’s “trademark” and the competition that brought her a Gold Medal at the 2019 International Circus Festival hosted by the Department of Performing Arts (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) and held in Quang Ninh. This is a remarkable success for the host country compared to other countries such as Australia, Cambodia, China, Cuba, Egypt, Hungary, Laos, and Singapore.

Pole somersaults require a high level of concentration and precision from both the dancer and the pole supporter. However, the most difficult and dangerous level lies with the acrobat, especially when he has to hug his knees and do 2-3 somersaults in the air, both technically and beautifully like Thuy and her partner.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvXAnyAMgwo[/embed]

Video of Lo Thi Ngoc Thuy doing 2 somersaults in the air (minute 5:30)

“How can I make my body stretch when I go up in the air, and then when I fall down, I feel as soft and light as a leaf,” Ngoc Thuy shared about controlling my body shape.

Meritorious Artist Do Van Hung (Vietnam Circus Federation) said that to this day, pole acrobatics is still one of the most difficult moves in the world circus. 15 years ago, he was the one who selected Ngoc Thuy from the 2004-2009 class of the Vietnam Circus and Variety Arts College to train her in this act.

The Lang Son girl, then 15 years old, made an initial impression with her pretty appearance and small figure, suitable for being an acrobatic performer as well as a central character. But circus always requires hard work and high seriousness. In Ngoc Thuy, Artist Do Van Hung noted that she “always tried 150%, always followed the skills that had been trained and exceeded what I wanted,” or as the actress herself commented, “her entire youth was devoted to pole vaulting.”

2019 ended on a high note after Ngoc Thuy won another Gold Award at the International Circus Festival in Hanoi, just one month after the event in Quang Ninh.

With those efforts, in April 2024, Ngoc Thuy and 3 female co-actors performed excellently the act "4-Women's Hat Swing", bringing home a Silver Award at the IDOL International Circus Festival held in the Russian Federation.

To perform this act, Vietnamese girls form a human “rope”. Each person has a challenge: The person on top uses her wrist to support the weight of 3 people below, the others have to balance their whole body, some use their hair buns and in Ngoc Thuy’s case, she uses her teeth.

Although the version of Acrobatics on a Pole and Four-Women’s Hat Swing at “Hanoi in My Heart” was shortened and simplified compared to the international competition, it still left an impression on the audience. “I haven’t watched circus for a long time because I thought it only belonged to my childhood, but when I grew up, circus gave me a different feeling, I really admire the artists who are not only strong but also flexible and graceful,” a group of 24-year-old audience members shared.

The show was held at 4:30 p.m. on September 19, with a theater occupancy rate of over 60%. (Photo: Minh Anh/Vietnam+)

"I'll stop doing human circus and switch to animal circus"

Lo Thi Ngoc Thuy was born in 1993. Since childhood, she was mischievous, liked to climb and was flexible with physical activities. With a tendency to love performing arts, she was admitted to the Vietnam Circus School and began her training journey in Hanoi at the age of 11.

Ngoc Thuy's parents are farmers, and seeing that their daughter has the opportunity to study in the capital, they agreed to let her pursue this career. She is the second child in the family (Thuy has an older sister), but she has shown her ability early on. Studying in the city, she missed home, so from the age of 12, she often took the bus to visit her parents.

After graduating, half of the Nung girl’s circus class “fell apart” because of career changes. The rest went to the South. Ngoc Thuy also planned to go to Ho Chi Minh City to start a career, but her parents had to live too far away from her, so she chose to stay in the capital. Thanks to that, she was lucky enough to be chosen by teacher Do Van Hung to join the pole vaulting act, joining the Vietnam Circus Federation.

Lo Thi Ngoc Thuy with her teacher - Meritorious Artist Do Van Hung. (Photo: VNA)

The girl said that the number of times her parents witnessed her performing could be counted on one hand because they were nervous and worried about their child and did not dare to watch. Knowing that their daughter was competing domestically and internationally, Ngoc Thuy's parents always watched from afar. She was always proud to learn perseverance from her father - "whatever you do, do it to the end."

Ngoc Thuy has just turned 31, but looking back, it has been 20 years since she started working in the circus. Her income in the profession is only about 10 million/month, but it cannot be denied that this art is both an ingredient and an indispensable spice in her life.

In addition to her weekly practice hours and four weekend performances, Ngoc Thuy also teaches yoga and pilates classes to earn extra money to support her living expenses. She has classes almost every day of the week, alternating between early morning, noon and evening after office hours.

Ngoc Thuy's jumping move, program "Hanoi in my heart." (Photo: Minh Anh/Vietnam+)

Circus performers have a certain age. Usually, women over 30 have started to slow down and it is difficult to learn new acts. Although her “side job” gives her a better source of income, her “right” job is what gives her the joy of being an artist.

“If I stop doing human circus, I will switch to animal circus training,” Ngoc Thuy answered very quickly when asked about her future plans. “The emotions of an artist have permeated me, the cheers from the audience are wonderful and uplifting! If I can’t do a climax act anymore, I will just do something simple, but I won’t give up.”

In recent months, the Central Circus has witnessed a gradual increase in the number of audiences on the stands. Not only limited to circus for children or school performances, the programs celebrating the Liberation of the South and National Reunification (April 30 - May 1), the Victory of Dien Bien Phu Campaign (May 7), National Day (September 2), Liberation of the Capital (October 10)... targeting the elderly and young people have also increased. As a dedicated actor like Ngoc Thuy, there is nothing happier than seeing her contributions being given new life in the hearts of the Vietnamese people.

Lo Thi Ngoc Thuy was awarded the title of Meritorious Artist and Advanced Youth following Uncle Ho's teachings in 2023. In addition to the two gold and silver awards in 2019, she also won first prize in the National Circus Talent Competition in 2021.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/co-gai-vang-cua-lang-xiec-viet-nghi-xiec-nguoi-se-chuyen-sang-xiec-thu-post986309.vnp