HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam National Drama Theatre will perform Nghêu Sò Ốc Hến (The Stories of the Clam, Oyster, Snail, and Mussel) in a tour around European countries from March 31.

Nghêu Sò Ốc Hến, one of the masterpieces of Vietnamese folk comedy theatre, has been staged in many different forms such as tuồng (classical opera), chèo (popular opera), cải lương (reformed theatre) and drama. The folk tale is said to have originated from the central province of Quảng Nam.

The four main characters are named Clam, Oyster, Snail and Mussel. Mussel is a beautiful widow who is always flirted with by village authorities. The story depicts a rural Vietnamese area under feudalism on the decline.

The first folk tale–based script for tuồng was penned by folk culture researchers Hoàng Châu Ký and Tống Phước Phổ in 1965. Việt Nam National Drama Theatre has since staged the work many times.

The first version by director Dương Ngọc Đức resonated strongly in Russia in 1982, while director Tú Mai brought the drama to international theatre festivals in the Czech Republic and South Korea in 2006 and 2007.

The drama will take the stage at Hotel Salomon de Rothschild in Paris on March 31. The show is a sideline at Vietnam Global Leaders Forum held in Paris to bring together the world’s top leaders, high-profile figures and successful start-ups all over the world with a passion and ambition for branding Việt Nam.

The theatre’s deputy director Nguyễn Xuân Bắc will present on culture and people at the forum.

"We want to bring a play that has folklore characteristics to entertain Vietnamese audiences living far away the homeland," said Bắc.

After the Paris show the artists will perform in Berlin, Budapest and the Czech Republic. — AFP