Proud of patriotism with the Dai Viet Map

Dai Viet Stage has just presented the play The Dai Viet Map at Tran Huu Trang Theater. This is one of the good plays about patriotism and the spirit of fighting against foreign invaders of the Minh To - Thanh Tong family.

Vo Minh Lam added a good role, the old man Nguyen Dia Lo, to his career journey - Photo: LINH DOAN

The 2025 version of Dai Viet Map (authors: Ha Van Cau, Loan Thao, Thanh Tong) directed by Hoa Ha breathed new life into the old script, bringing the audience very special emotions.

Vo Minh Lam seizes the opportunity in Dai Viet Map

Before starting to practice the movie "The Great Viet Map", Vo Minh Lam had two choices, the role of Nguyen Phuc or Nguyen Dia Lo. Nguyen Phuc was very suitable for Lam's handsome image.

As for Nguyen Dia Lo, he is an old actor, but he is also a famous role played by two famous cai luong artists, Thanh Tong and Vu Linh. If he does not act skillfully, he will be compared to, or just be a shadow of, his seniors.

However, Vo Minh Lam considers this a precious opportunity that he must grasp. He wants to "touch" difficult roles to challenge himself and practice his profession.

In this play, it is even more difficult because director Hoa Ha wants to stage not only a ticket-selling play but also a professional play. That means the play is an advanced play, the actors are forced to learn the quintessence that their predecessors have left behind, and must strive to have performances that create brilliance.

Que Tran and Tu Suong play the couple Nguyen Phuc - Bao Tram - Photo: LINH DOAN

From that request, artist Thanh Son (Mr. Minh To's youngest son) designed difficult dances. The director had strict requirements on deepening the characters' psychology, making most of the characters in the play very heavy.

The hardest part is arguably the role of Nguyen Dia Lo played by Vo Minh Lam. In the play, Lam had to appear in 3 consecutive scenes, including a solo performance that shocked the young actor.

Unlike Mr. Bay Don in Nguoi ven do , Nguyen Dia Lo is an old man in a period play, so when acting, the artist is extremely exhausted. Vo Minh Lam had to break his voice to sing and act like an old man.

Pham Vu Thanh (right) plays the role of the unique actor Tich Ban very well alongside veteran artist Thanh Son - Photo: LINH DOAN

The character has a complex psychology, having to continuously go through scenes from hearing the news of his son's treason, being convicted, not being allowed to go to the front line, stealing horses, and traveling over high passes to hunt down traitors, making Lam almost exhausted in each practice session.

The corners of his lips were bleeding because he had to constantly put on a fake beard. It could be said that this was the first time Lam had such a heavy role. In return, on the premiere night, he made the audience clap continuously because he had a very different and new Nguyen Dia Lo compared to his predecessor.

Sisters Tu Suong and Que Tran in harmony

The second most difficult role in the play belongs to the character Nguyen Phuc played by artist Tu Suong. The most difficult part is that Tu Suong has to play the male role, a character who falls into a trap and becomes a pawn on the chessboard of life.

In ancient opera troupes, it was not uncommon for female artists to play male roles or male artists to play female roles, but it is quite rare on stage today. This "swapping" once again added a challenge for Tu Suong to make the audience believe without feeling emotionally overwhelmed.

And Tu Suong has proven to have made great strides in her career, conquering extremely difficult roles that not every artist can do.

Viewers were moved and felt sorry for her in the scenes where she had to use a lot of force, such as the scene where Nguyen Phuc was in pain and humiliated when the enemy scorned him and called him a "rude god". He roared like a wounded animal and went through a long night of nightmares.

Young actor Lam Minh Nghiem (right) also shows progress in the character Tran Hung Dao - Photo: LINH DOAN

The play is also softened with the scenery of the Northwest mountains and forests, dances and songs that create romance in the meeting between the characters The Loc and A Van, creating conditions for the Golden Bell of Southern Folk Song Minh Truong to show off his beautiful voice - Photo: LINH DOAN

Paired with Tu Suong is her cousin Que Tran in the role of Bao Tram. The character of Bao Tram seems easy and more than capable compared to Tran, but it turns out that it is not easy with psychological changes that the artist must express very delicately to portray and leave an impression.

Tu Suong is strong with the image of Nguyen Phuc. Que Tran is soft, gentle, graceful in the image of Bao Tram, creating a harmony, the image of a deeply loving couple in the Dai Viet Map . And above all, the Dai Viet Map not only has human destinies but also shines the spirit of patriotism, the indomitable spirit of standing up against foreign invaders for generations of the Vietnamese people.

Not only did Vo Minh Lam, Tu Suong, and Que Tran shine, but Buc Ngon Do Dai Viet also showed the progress of many artists. For example, Pham Vu Thanh played the role of the lone Tich Ban very well. Lam Minh Nghiem was more calm and mature with the role of Tran Hung Dao.

In addition to his forte as a solo actor, Dien Trung also works as an assistant director. Artists Thanh Son, Minh Truong, Kim Ngan, Le Thanh Thao, Nha Thy, Huu Tai... all contribute their own unique features to create the appeal of the new version of The Great Viet Map .

However, because the roles are too heavy, the artists may need more time to get used to and gradually improve to create more smoothness and solidity in each upcoming performance after the night of October 11.

LINH DOAN

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tu-hao-long-yeu-nuoc-voi-buc-ngon-do-dai-viet-20251013093017061.htm