Hoang Thien Thuc - Artist passionate about teaching folk dance

In March 2024, teacher Hoang Thien Thuc, a lecturer at Viet Bac College of Culture and Arts, was honored to be one of seven artists in Thai Nguyen province to be awarded the title of Meritorious Artist (NSUT) by the State. Compared to his contemporaries, he has had few opportunities to perform under the spotlight, because he chose to silently devote himself behind the scenes: Choreographing and training many actors and folk dancers.

Meeting Meritorious Artist Hoang Thien Thuc, we were immediately impressed by his simple personality, charming and extremely humorous way of speaking. Mr. Thuc talked about his fate in the profession: Born and raised in a family where both parents were workers in the Trai Cau mine (Dong Hy), but loved singing since childhood, so at home I often sang along and memorized Quan Ho, Cheo, and Cai Luong songs I heard on the radio.

Also because he loved singing, at that time, Mr. Thuc often participated in the school and local art programs. Then one day, a friend came to visit, heard the boy Thuc's voice, and said: You sing so well, it would be a waste if you don't pursue art. "This sentence ignited my dream of becoming a singer. And my friend guided me to register and take the entrance exam for the Viet Bac Art College. After listening to my audition, the teacher saw that I caught the song quickly, sang well, and had a good voice in folk music, cheo, quan ho, cai luong, tuong, so she encouraged me to study" - Mr. Thuc recalled.

However, the school only recruited students who had finished high school, and he still had 3 more years to complete high school, so teacher Nguyen Thi Dong guided him to study dance, and when he was old enough, he would switch to singing. So he nodded in agreement to take the exam and passed the Dance Department. The fate of dancing came to him by chance.

People often say: "If you can't stand hardship, don't learn dance", Mr. Thuc feels that is true. The process of practicing this subject is very hard, painful, and even more difficult for men. The stage of practicing European classical dance is very demanding, he witnessed many people who could not overcome the challenge, had to give up halfway. However, overcoming all difficulties and obstacles, thanks to the encouragement of teachers, especially from his mother, Mr. Thuc devoted himself to practicing, determined to pursue a career in dance.

Gradually, his love for dance was nurtured and he fell in love with dance without realizing it. There were times when his classmates were off, but he still practiced passionately. Overcoming the challenging first year, from the second year onwards, Thuc was the most outstanding student in the dance class, and was elected as the class monitor. During his years at the school, he received scholarships and was able to cover all his living and study expenses.

Thanks to his excellent academic results, in 1994, after graduating, Mr. Thuc was retained at the school as a lecturer in the Dance Department. From 2008 to present, he has been the Deputy Head of the Department, then Head of the Dance and Theater Department of the School.

Since he was a student, Mr. Thuc had a passion for choreography. That is why after graduating, while his friends were pursuing acting careers and shining on stages in and outside the province, Mr. Thuc decided to stay at the school as a lecturer, with the desire to guide and train many generations of true folk dancers.

Sharing with us, he said: The dance profession is inherently stressful and hard, so not everyone can follow it. This is also the reason why most dance courses gradually lose students, leaving only 50-60%. I always think that teachers are not only the ones who meticulously teach dance techniques and skills, but also play the role of "igniting the fire", guiding and helping students practice perseverance and strive to overcome difficulties and challenges.

In Viet Bac College of Culture and Arts, students learn dance at a young age, so Mr. Thuc is both a teacher and a father who teaches them about speech, life skills, and how to live a disciplined life to ensure good health and study. He is also the one who guides them not to fall into material temptations and social evils...

In particular, when students make mistakes, he is tolerant and guides them into the "orbit". Even when students in his class violate discipline, he stands up to guarantee, commits to the school to teach them to improve, and creates opportunities for them to continue studying.

Caring and understanding the personality of each student, Mr. Thuc is also like a friend, often chatting and sharing with students from daily stories to secret thoughts.

Outside of school, we found him to be friendly and open, but in class, we found him to be a strict teacher. Witnessing his classes, we saw him meticulously correcting his students' every movement, posture, finger, and strict adherence to time and dress.

Mr. Thuc confided: For traditional folk dance, in addition to requiring students to meet strict physical standards, they also need to have the ability to perceive music and perform in a true traditional style. Incorrect movements will not be able to convey the message the dance wants to bring to the audience... I always require students to practice each movement over and over again until it is perfect, so many students jokingly say "the teacher is as difficult as a mother-in-law".

I remember the graduation report of the K1 talented dance class of the Viet Bac College of Culture and Arts, meeting Nguyen Minh Hai (in Bac Quang district, Ha Giang ) after he had just finished the exams. Sweat covered his face, but his eyes shone with joy. Talking about Mr. Thuc, Hai was moved: When I first went to school, practicing a lot made my body extremely painful, I was discouraged, intending to give up dancing and switch to another faculty. But thanks to the encouragement and guidance of Mr. Thuc, I was able to develop my abilities and was selected for the K1 talented dance class. To me, Mr. Thuc is both a teacher and a second father.

For every dancer, performing on stage is the greatest happiness. But for Mr. Thuc, although he was an excellent student of the course and had many opportunities to shine, he chose to stand behind the bright halo of the stage lights to contribute silently.

In addition to training professional, high-quality dance artists for the northern mountainous provinces and art troupes of Military Regions 1, 2, and 3, he also participates in collecting and conducting in-depth research on ethnic folk dance art. During the research process, Mr. Thuc realized that this is a lacking and weak area of dance art.

Mr. Thuc expressed his point of view: Dance is a performing art, using body language to reflect emotions and phenomena of life. Ethnic folk dance requires the dance to bring the soul and essence of each ethnic group to the audience. Therefore, the important thing in choreographing folk dances is to be creative and develop based on the roots of ethnic culture. A good ethnic folk dance does not need to depend on costumes or accessories, but only through the dance, the audience can still recognize which ethnic group it belongs to, how to escape the beaten path, but still maintain the "true quality" of that ethnic group.

And his research has served him well in choreographing traditional folk dances. Up to now, his repertoire of choreographed dances is quite rich, highly appreciated, and loved by many actors and audiences.

Most recently, in 2024, he collaborated with the Museum of Vietnamese Ethnic Cultures to research the culture of the Lu ethnic group. From that research, he is in the process of compiling a curriculum for teaching Lu ethnic folk dance to be included in the school's curriculum. Later, he continues to set the goal of researching and developing curriculum for teaching dances of other ethnic groups, serving the teaching and preservation of ethnic folk dance culture and art for the future...