What's attractive about the two plays that won the Gold Award at the National Cheo Festival?

The 2025 National Cheo Festival was a success. The plays participating in the Festival covered a variety of topics, from history, folklore to modernity, vividly reflecting the breath of life.

On the evening of November 2, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism coordinated with the People's Committee of Bac Ninh province to organize the closing ceremony, summarize and award the prizes of the 2025 National Cheo Festival.

The two plays that won Gold Medals were “Nguyen Van Cu - Great Youth” (Army Cheo Theatre) and “Thien Menh” ( Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre). Meritorious Artist Quynh Mai of Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre was also awarded the Outstanding Actress Award for her role in “Thien Menh.”

Historical themes 'reign'

The Cheo play “Nguyen Van Cu: Youth with Great Ambition” by the Army Cheo Theatre includes slices of the revolutionary life of comrade Nguyen Van Cu, through three stages: when he was studying at the French Protectorate School, building a struggle movement there, when he left school to return to his hometown, and when he led the movement at Mao Khe coal mine, Quang Ninh as Mao Khe Secretary, was arrested and imprisoned by the French colonialists.

The play was directed by People's Artist Vu Tu Long, Director of the Army Cheo Theater, based on a script by author Le The Song.

The crew has incorporated Quan Ho and Cheo melodies into the story, creating a soft, gentle feeling. The performance of the young actors in the play is also quite smooth, surprising many audiences because this is a rather heavy play, not only in terms of propaganda about the image of the revolutionary soldier, the late General Secretary Nguyen Van Cu, but also in terms of art with Quan Ho and Cheo melodies used interwoven.

The show was performed in just two months, with nearly 100 artists, actors, and musicians, including many young actors.

“They are young people, so they will have very different feelings about the play than previous generations. In addition to maintaining the tradition of the profession and the revolutionary will, they also have to fan the flame of love for the profession,” said People’s Artist Tu Long.

According to People's Artist Tu Long, the play is divided into three parts to increase the fictional element but not to fabricate more about history. The fictional image of comrade Nguyen Van Cu is both simple and reveals great personality and character, and especially shows the spirit of youth.

“In fact, when making this play, we also wanted to propagate to the young generation today, especially the young party members and young soldiers, that, in such difficulties and hardships, the previous generation remained steadfast and loyal to their ideals. So today's young generation must live in a way that is worthy of their ancestors, of those who sacrificed themselves in hardship,” said People's Artist Tu Long.

Meritorious Artist Quynh Mai and artist Ba Chung perform the characters of Linh Tu Quoc Mau Tran Thi Dung and Grand Tutor Tran Thu Do. (Photo: NH)

Also receiving the Gold Medal was the play “Thien Menh” (Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre), written by Hoang Thanh Du, directed by People’s Artist Ta Quang Lam, and composed by artist Dang Tien Manh.

The play is set in the early period of the Tran Dynasty, portraying the portrait of Grand Tutor Tran Thu Do - a historical figure famous for his resourcefulness, strategic vision, respect for talent and willingness to sacrifice himself for a greater cause.

“Thien Menh” recreates a turbulent period in history, when the Ly dynasty was in decline. The appearance of Grand Tutor Tran Thu Do is considered an inevitable factor, opening the Tran dynasty that lasted more than 200 years of ruling the country. The work emphasizes the role of Grand Tutor Tran Thu Do not only as a founding father but also as the one who laid the foundation for the ideology of governing the country, pacifying the people, and building discipline and law.

The work also depicts Tran Thu Do's wisdom in trusting Tran Quoc Tuan - a man who had a grudge against the royal court but later became a famous general in the nation's history with three great victories over the Yuan-Mongol army, and was awarded the title of Hung Dao Dai Vuong by King Tran.

According to People's Artist Ta Quang Lam, Director of Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre, "Thien Menh" evokes the Dong A spirit and the spirit of national unity that created the strength to defeat foreign invaders. At the same time, it conveys a timely message: The law and order must be preserved and cannot be broken for any reason. This is not only a historical story but also a valuable lesson for today's and tomorrow's society.

Efforts to innovate Cheo

In his closing speech, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Head of the Festival Steering Committee Ta Quang Dong said that the 2025 National Cheo Festival is a large-scale art event, held periodically to honor and promote the value of traditional Cheo heritage, and is also an opportunity for art troupes to exchange, learn and share experiences.

Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ta Quang Dong delivered the closing speech. (Photo: Organizing Committee)

This year, the plays participating in the Festival have diverse themes, from history, folklore to modernity, vividly reflecting the breath of life. Each play is a creative voice, the crystallization of the serious artistic work, passion and dedication of the artists.

“We are pleased to see that through each play and each role, the art of Cheo is changing strongly. Many troupes have made discoveries and innovations in staging, music, costumes, combining tradition and contemporary. These efforts show the spirit of innovation and integration without losing its identity. This is the right direction for Cheo to continue to live sustainably in modern life,” added Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong.

Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong affirmed that the Festival is not only an occasion to honor artistic values, but also an opportunity to look back at the current situation, discover and nurture young talents, and help Cheo troupes improve themselves to meet the needs of contemporary audiences.

Awarding creative components to authors and artists. (Photo: Organizing Committee)

The event also opened a forum for discussion on the challenges of traditional art in the context of integration, digital transformation and public taste.

Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong believes that from the success of this year's Festival, Vietnamese Cheo art will continue to affirm its mettle, professionalism and closeness to the public, worthy of being the "voice of the soul" of Vietnamese people today.

Commenting on the Festival, Chairman of the Arts Council, playwright Chu Thom said that the remarkable point of this year's Festival is the strong shift in creative themes. If in the past, plays about history and folklore dominated, now, works about modern themes are almost equal to the number of historical plays.

That shows that Cheo producers are making efforts to explore, experiment, and bring the breath of contemporary life into the stage.

The appearance of many young faces in the plays is also a positive signal, proving that the art of Cheo is being continued and renewed, adapting to the modern pace of life, fighting against the risk of fading away before the "storm 4.0" and the dominance of many other art forms.

According to playwright Chu Thom, this year’s works on the theme of revolutionary cadres and Party and State leaders are expressed with emotional depth. They are people with “heart and vision,” who put the interests of the nation above all else, and are full of affection for comrades, teammates, family and the people./.

Awarding medals to actors. (Photo: Organizing Committee)

The Organizing Committee awarded 2 Gold Medals and 5 Silver Medals to the plays; 2 Excellence Awards, 33 Gold Medals and 65 Silver Medals to individuals.

Two plays that won Gold medals include: "Nguyen Van Cu - Great Youth" (Army Cheo Theatre) and "Thien Menh" (Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre).

The two actors who won the Excellence Award were Meritorious Artist of National Defense (Bui Van Phong) of Hanoi Cheo Theatre and Meritorious Artist Quynh Mai (Pham Thi Mai) of Bac Ninh Cheo Theatre.

Creative component awards include: Outstanding scriptwriter Tran Dinh Ngon (Eastern Cheo Theatre); Outstanding director Le Van Tuan (Hanoi Cheo Theatre); Outstanding musician Duong Thanh Nam (Ninh Binh Province Traditional Arts Theatre); Outstanding art design Dau Quang Anh (Hung Yen Cheo Theatre); Outstanding choreographer Meritorious Artist Hoai Anh (Vietnam National Traditional Theatre).

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/co-gi-hap-dan-trong-hai-vo-dien-dat-giai-vang-lien-hoan-cheo-toan-quoc-post1074574.vnp