HISTORICAL ART: Young actors from HCM City’s Trần Hữu Trang Theatre will perform in historical plays at the 2023 National Theatre Festival in Hà Nam Province. Photo courtesy of the organiser.

HCM CITY — Veteran and young actors from the HCM City-based Trần Hữu Trang Cải Lương Theatre will perform during the 2023 National Theatre Festival in the northern province of Hà Nam from May 17 to June 5.

The festival is part of the province’s six-day Culture-Tourism Week 2023, which started on May 14. The event includes 12 cultural, sports and tourism programmes, creating opportunities for investors to seek and develop their business in Hà Nam.

Artists from HCM City are among more than 1,000 performers who will attend the 2023 National Theatre Festival.

They will stage excerpts from new plays featuring cải lương (reformed opera), a traditional art form originating from the South over 100 years ago.

Young talents Nhã Thy, Kim Thuỳ and Hoài Nam will perform three excerpts from Dòng Sông Đỏ (Red River) by People’s Artist and director Trần Ngọc Giàu.

The play highlights the culture and lifestyle of farmers of the Mekong River Delta region.

Each of their 25-minute performances will feature the uniqueness of cải lương. New and experimental concepts will also be included.

“Our young artists will offer Vietnamese theatre in the style of the South for our colleagues and audiences in the festival,” said Meritorious Artist and director Lê Trung Thảo of Trần Hữu Trang Theatre, who has 20 years of theatrical experience, in an interview with Người Lao Động (Labourer) newspaper.

Thảo’s team will perform a series of excerpts of historical plays by well-known scriptwriters Nguyễn Thị Minh Ngọc and Hoàng Song Việt. Their works depict patriotism and honesty.

“I hope our performances will leave a fresh impression on audiences in Hà Nam,” said Thảo.

TOP FESTIVAL: The 2023 National Theatre Festival attracts 32 state-owned and private art troupes. More than 1,000 artists in different fields of Vietnamese theatre, such as circus, puppet, cải lương, chèo (traditional opera) and tuồng (classical drama), will perform during May 17 and June 5. Photo courtesy of the organiser.

The 2023 National Theatre Festival attracts 32 state-owned and private art troupes, including leading theatres in Hà Nam, Hà Nội, HCM City, Bạc Liêu and Long An provinces.

More than 120 art performances in different fields of Vietnamese theatre, such as circus, puppet shows, cải lương, chèo (traditional opera) and tuồng (classical drama), will be staged.

Chèo is believed to have been originated in the 10th century and has its roots in village festivals in the Red River Delta.

Tuồng is a symbolic form of Vietnamese theatre that originated in the central region in the 17th century and expanded to the south, particularly in Mekong Delta provinces. The art is highly stylised and filled with symbolism.

The festival will take place at the Hà Nam Centre of Culture and Art in Phủ Lý City. – VNS