A member of the audience enjoys puppet making at the workshop held at the Việt Nam Puppet Theatre. Photo coutersy of Roiconic project

HÀ NỘI — As many traditional art forms struggle to reach young audiences amid the growing dominance of digital technology, the Roiconic project has adopted a fresh approach to promoting traditional puppetry.

Launched last month, the project was jointly carried out by a group of students from the Academy of Journalism and Communication and the Việt Nam Puppet Theatre.

It not only seeks to rekindle pride in the nation’s cultural heritage, but also charts a new path for rejuvenating traditional arts that's grounded in creativity, modern sensibilities and deep respect for original roots.

The theatre's Deputy Director Lê Đức Anh said: "The project had been successful on multiple fronts, bringing water puppetry closer to younger audiences – a demographic the theatre itself aims to reach.

“The students chose a relatively new and effective approach. We will continue to support student-led projects related to relevant fields so that, through traditional art, the young audience can better understand and appreciate Vietnamese culture.”

At the theatre, an experiential space and a show designed for the audience were introduced last Saturday as part of the project.

From the check-in area, the audience was guided into a setting imbued with the atmosphere of the northern countryside.

This led to an exhibition space showcasing puppets of various sizes and styles depicting scenes of rural life, labour, festivals and familiar figures from Việt Nam’s puppetry repertoire.

Moving beyond the conventional model of watching and appreciating puppetry, the audience engaged in a series of interactive activities, encouraging exploration, dialogue and direct encounters with puppetry.

Alongside hands-on activities, a workshop was held with the participation of Meritorious artist Đặng Duy Bằng.

With more than 30 years of experience, Bằng emphasised that allowing the audience to physically touch the puppet is key to fostering lasting interest. 

"Exposure to materials, old stories and creative processes helps the audience better understand the cultural value embedded in each show," said Bằng. 

A the workshop, the audience joined in painting and decorating uncoloured wooden puppets, freely expressing their own creative ideas, while also learning basic puppeteering techniques under the guidance of Bằng.

The workshop not only enables the audience to appreciate the delicacy embedded in every movement and design detail but also transforms artistic engagement into a deeply personal creative journey.

The atmosphere in the experiential area remained lively, as the audience created, discussed and reflected on the meaning of each detail, gaining deeper insight into the meticulous process behind a puppet’s creation before it appears on stage.

The workshop introduced creative products inspired by puppetry, including a board game. Designed as a logic-based game, it weaves elements of folk culture into a format aligned with young people's cultural consumption habits, offering a new experimental pathway for integrating heritage into contemporary life. 

The show Âm Vang Đồng Quê (Echoes of the Countryside) completes a full cycle of engagement in the day, including water puppetry. Puppeteers bring to life vivid images of rice fields, buffaloes and rural villages on the stage, seamlessly interwoven with the sounds of flutes and drums.

According to Roiconic project operator Nghiêm Trà My, the project aims to expand the spaces in which traditional arts can exist.

“We don’t want puppetry to be confined to theatre or textbook,” My said.

“Heritage needs to be present in everyday life, in activities that feel accessible to young people. Only then does preservation become truly meaningful.”

Exceeding expectations, the project is expected to continue spreading its message through an emotionally rich journey – reimagining a time-honoured cultural form through fresh and creative perspectives. — VNS