The successor of a great theater family: Doan Minh To is a powerful force.

The largest and most powerful theatrical family is arguably the Minh To family. Up to now, the number of descendants who inherit and preserve the tradition is still very large and all are famous.

FROM HAT BOI TO HU QUANG

This family started with Mr. and Mrs. Vinh Xuan, when they established the Vinh Xuan opera troupe in the early 1920s to perform throughout the six provinces of the South (at that time, there was no reformed opera, opera was popular). The second generation was Mr. Nguyen Van Thang (son of Mr. and Mrs. Vinh Xuan) who was only 14 years old when he took the stage, at 20 years old he became a famous handsome actor throughout the South, and at 30 years old he established his own troupe called Vinh Xuan Ban, based at Cau Quan communal house, District 1, Saigon (old).

During this period, hát bội gradually declined, cải lương began to appear to attract audiences, so the producer Thắng tended to reform, research and rewrite hát bội to make it lighter and easier to watch, reduce Chinese, and add beautiful performance techniques. And this reform trend was continued to be developed by the third generation, to completely switch to cải lương.

People's Artist Thanh Tong and Ngoc Dang in the play To Hien Thanh on trial - PHOTO: HK

Mr. Thang had 10 children, among them Minh To, Khanh Hong, Huynh Mai, Bach Cuc, Duc Phu, who followed the family's singing career. Minh To became the pillar of the third generation, shouldering the entire troupe. He, his wife and younger siblings went to Phung Hao troupe of artist Phung Ha to study reformed opera, then returned to his troupe to establish a new genre, Ho Quang reformed opera. This is a combination of the beautiful forms of Hat Boi with traditional reformed opera, along with new melodies from Hong Kong and Taiwan, creating a stage work that is both emotional and bustling, lively and attractive to the audience.

It should be added that during this period (mid-1950s to early 1960s), Hong Kong and Taiwanese films flooded into Saigon, attracting the public to the point that many traditional cai luong troupes fell into trouble, so Mr. Minh To's ability to find his own way out was also creative. He knew how to combine the so-called "trend" with traditional values inherited from his family and learned from artist Phung Ha, thanks to which the troupe revived and developed. Artist Duc Phu in particular had great contributions, because he composed many new songs, or converted from Hong Kong and Taiwanese music to music with Vietnamese influences, cai luong influences, and even some songs with bolero influences.

THE FOURTH GENERATION OF CREATING TUONG CO

The Minh To family has the branches of Mr. Minh To and Mrs. Huynh Mai (mother of Meritorious Artist Thanh Loc) which are the two largest and most famous branches of the family. Minh To has 7 children who follow the profession, making up the famous fourth generation, namely Xuan Yen, Thanh Tong, Thanh Loan, Minh Tam, Cong Minh, Xuan Thu, Thanh Son, plus 2 sons-in-law, Huu Canh (Xuan Yen's husband) and Truong Son (Thanh Loan's husband) who are also famous Ho Quang artists.

Artists Truong Son and Thanh Loan in the play Saddle Poem - PHOTO: HK

Xuan Yen and Thanh Loan are two excellent actresses who specialize in playing opera. Minh Tam specializes in composing and arranging music for Cantonese opera. Cong Minh specializes in costumes and has been a trusted designer for many Cai Luong troupes for decades. Thanh Son is good at choreography, martial arts, and performing techniques for Cantonese opera and classical opera. He later became a teacher for many young artists.

And we must mention People's Artist Thanh Tong - the brightest point in the family, who has the merit of transforming from Ho Quang reformed opera to a new genre, Cai Luong Tuong Co, specializing in Vietnamese historical plays. After 1975, the State had a policy of finding ways for Ho Quang to adapt to the new society, so Thanh Tong started writing a series of plays such as Cau Tho Yen Ngua, Bao Tap Nguyen Phong, Ma Hong Soi Kiem Bac, Ngoan Lua Thang Long, To Hien Thanh Xu An, Buc Ngon Do Dai Viet... He and his uncle Duc Phu once again Vietnamized nearly 100% of Ho Quang musical melodies and dances, adding the Hat Boi style, or folk melodies, traditional Cai Luong songs... creating wonderful plays that are still valuable today. Many plays have become classics, are regularly re-produced, or contestants still use excerpts to participate in competitions such as Tran Huu Trang, Chuong Vang vong co ... People's Artist Thanh Tong is good at all fields: acting, writing, staging, teaching students, being a judge... He lives and dies for his profession, devoted to his work, even in difficult times he still finds a new path for cai luong.

In fact, the classical opera genre that Thanh Tong created has a special value and does not "destroy" Cai Luong as some people mistakenly believe. He adds a new and interesting "branch" to traditional Cai Luong, satisfying the rich "menu" for the audience. Watching classical opera composed by Thanh Tong, you will see a strong historical element but also a high level of entertainment, and the Vietnamese element is cleverly hidden in every note of music and choreography, making the play more intimate and luxurious than the original Ho Quang. (to be continued)

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/truyen-nhan-cua-dai-gia-toc-san-khau-doan-minh-to-luc-luong-hung-hau-185250720212325836.htm