SINGING MASTER: People’s Artist and guru of 'cải lương' Thanh Điền (right), who has 45 years of experience in Vietnamese theatre. Photo courtesy of the artist

HCM CITY— A TV series on crime featuring People’s Artist Thanh Điền, a guru of cải lương (reformed opera), in the lead role will air on the SCTV14 channel starting on Sunday.

Điền performs in Mặt Trời Khuyết (The Dark of the Sun), a production by talented director Đặng Minh Quốc of HCM City.

The show begins with a hit-and-run accident between two moving cars at night in a rural town. A driver is killed while the other driver leaves and gives no help.

Director Quốc used Điền as a cải lương actor and a father of two daughters who keeps the secrets of his family from many years ago and knows why the car accident happened.

Young artists Bella Mai and Vũ Đằng are also featured.

“My film, Mặt Trời Khuyết, features scenes of southern history, culture and theatre,” said director Quốc.

“I invited Điền to perform his art in my film as a way to guarantee its quality.”

NEW SERIES: People’s Artist Thanh Điền (left) performs in the TV series on crime called Mặt Trời Khuyết (The Dark of The Sun), which will air on the SCTV14 channel starting on Sunday. Photo courtesy of the producer

Điền has a 45-year-long career in cải lương, a 100-year-old traditional theatre genre of the southern region.

He has worked on more than 300 plays, videos and movies to expand Vietnamese theatre among young people.

"For a true artist, glory comes after hard work, suffering and sacrifice,” said Điền.

Điền is working on a long-term theatre project called 100 Năm Sân Khấu Cải Lương (A Hundred Years of Cải Lương Theatre).

The project offers TV shows featuring the history of cải lương, songs and plays performed by veteran and young artists.

“Our project preserves cải lương by recording and writing the events, the plays and artists of cải lương since the art began in Mỹ Tho in Tiền Giang Province,” said the 77-year-old.

“Our project will help young people understand why and how cải lương is the spirit of Vietnamese people."

Điền’s project, 100 Năm Sân Khấu Cải Lương, has received support from HCM City Television and the HCM City Theatre Association, as well as many young and veteran performers from the city and southern provinces.

Điền now works as a lecturer at Trần Hữu Trang Cải Lương Theatre and the HCM City University of Theatre and Cinematography.

His strong and melodic voice and stage presence has helped Điền leave an indelible mark on the art, enabling him to use his popularity to promote the art form.

He won several top prizes at theatre festivals and contests, including the Golden Prize for best theatre director at the 2003 National Television Festival in HCM City.

Fans will see Điền in the crime show Mặt Trời Khuyết at 7.30pm on SCTV14 every Thursday.--VNS