CELEBRATED WRITER: A scene from the short play Chân Dung Huỳnh Trí Bá (Portrait of Huỳnh Trí Bá), portraying the life and career of late playwright Viễn Châu, which was staged at the ceremony honouring the writer, at Đất Đỏ Commune in HCM City on Friday night. — VNA/VNS Photo Huỳnh Sơn

HCM CITY — Late People’s Artist Viễn Châu, one of the southern region’s most famous writers of cải lương (reformed opera), was honoured in a special ceremony at Đất Đỏ Commune in HCM City on Friday night.

The highlight of the ceremony was a short play called Chân Dung Huỳnh Trí Bá (Portrait of Huỳnh Trí Bá), which portrays the life and career of Châu, the creator of thousands of vọng cổ (nostalgic tune) songs and cải lương plays. Huỳnh Trí Bá is his real name.

Vọng cổ songs feature the hopes and dreams of southern people. The songs are used in cải lương (reformed opera) plays, and are popular among farmers, who love singing vọng cổ after a hard day of working in the fields.

The programme also highlighted Châu’s most favourite vọng cổ songs, such as Người Mẹ Miền Nam (Southern Mother), Tình Anh Bán Chiếu (Love of a Mat Seller), and Võ Đông Sơ - Bạch Thu Hà (Love Story of Võ Đông Sơ and Bạch Thu Hà), and an excerpt from the cải lương play Chuyện Tình Hàn Mặc Tử (Love Story of Hàn Mặc Tử).

The performances featured the country’s leading cải lương artists, such as People’s Artists Lệ Thủy and Minh Vương, and Trọng Hữu, Thanh Nam, Thoại Miêu and Trọng Phúc.

Nguyễn Thị Thanh Thúy, deputy director of the city Department of Culture and Sports, said that the ceremony honoured playwright Viễn Châu for his contributions to establishing and developing cải lương art, as well as preserving the cultural heritage and artistic values of the South and Việt Nam.

MAT SELLER LOVE: A performance of Tình Anh Bán Chiếu (Love of a Mat Seller), one of Châu’s most favourite vọng cổ songs. — VNA/VNS Photo Huỳnh Sơn

Châu was born into a traditional family in 1922 in Trà Vinh Province (now Vĩnh Long Province). He began his career in 1950 with his first cải lương play, Nát Cánh Hoa Rừng (Forest Flowers), which premiered in Sài Gòn (now HCM City). 

He composed more than 2,000 vọng cổ songs and 70 cải lương plays, depicting the region’s history, society, culture and lifestyle in different periods. They also reflect family, friendship and love. 

His famous plays include Chuyện Tình Lan Và Điệp (Love Story of Lan and Điệp), Tình Mẫu Tử (Mother’s Love) and Sau Bức Màn Nhung (Behind the Velvet Curtain), all in praise of southern women and traditional family values. 

These plays were staged by famed cải lương artists such as Thanh Nga, Ngọc Giàu and Lệ Thủy. The works have been restaged and adapted to film several times. 

Châu worked for dozens of leading cải lương troupes in the region, such as Dạ Lý Hương, Tân Hoa Lan, Thanh Nga Cải Lương Troupe and Trần Hữu Trang Theatre. 

He died in 2016 in HCM City. — VNS