HÀ NỘI — HCM City-based artist Lê Trung Thảo won the Gold Medal at the 4th Hà Nội International Experimental Theatre Festival on Sunday night.

Thảo performed a traditional cải lương (reformed theatre) piece entitled Nhật Thực (Eclipse) by director Lê Nguyên Đạt.

Through a natural phenomenon – an eclipse, the play conveys the story that good things are sometimes obscured by darkness.

In that moment, people look back and look at themselves. It's like an artist who finds a new direction to preserve and develop traditional art.

“I’m moved to receive the gold medal,” said Thảo. “We've put in a lot of effort to achieve this success. We know now that audiences still love cải lương. After the festival, Nhật Thực will have eight shows in HCM City. That is a big reward for us. I want to thank director Đạt, script writer Lê Duy Hạnh and our team.”

The play was highly appreciated by international artists who attended the show. 

"The play is beautiful and charming," said Kyriaki Spanou, art director of a Greek troupe. "It combines western and eastern culture and different kinds of art genres such as body performance, dancing, singing, light and visual effects."

"I like Nhật Thực and I'm impressed by the leading role," said South Korean Yoon Woo-young. "I think I want to try something like Nhật Thực next time I'm in Việt Nam."

Gold medals were also presented to Israel's Ofer Freeman, Singapore's Zhou Mi; Greece's Dimitros Mamios, India's Monalisa Chatterjee and Korea's Seol Jae-keun. 

Israel's Ayit Ensemble's Bpolar; Việt Nam Puppetry Theatre's Thân Phận Nàng Kiều (The Fate of Kiều); Việt Nam National Drama Theatre's Sự Sống (Life) and Việt Nam Youth Theatre's Vanya also picked up gold medals. 

Bpolar by Israel's Ayit Troupe won a gold medal at the 4th International Experimental Theatre Festival in Hà Nội. — Photo tuoitre.online

Bpolar is a modern visual adaptation of Diary of a Mad Man about the story of a clerk who falls in love with his manager’s daughter. The play redefines the borders between theatre and cinema.

Vietnamese director Nguyễn Tiến Dũng and Israeli light designer Uri Morag were among others honoured at the festival.  

The festival was held from October 4-13 with the participation of seven international troupes and 14 Vietnamese troupes. — VNS