New vitality of folk performing arts

Dao Thuc Water Puppet Theatre always attracts
 a large number of tourists. (Photo: The Nghi)

Ha Noi has a rich repertoire of folk performing arts, from water puppetry to ‘Cheo’ (Vietnamese traditional opera), ‘trong quan’ folk singing and drum dance, and Ai Lao singing and dancing. There was a period when many folk performing arts were at risk of disappearing. However, thanks to investment and support from authorities at all levels and the cultural sector, folk art forms have found new vitality. Many localities have utilised folk art forms to develop the cultural industry.

From the story of a puppetry village

In the past, the artisans in Dao Thuc Water Puppetry Village in Thuy Lam Commune, Dong Anh District, Ha Noi, only performed a few times a year, mostly during festivals and cultural exchanges. But now, it has become their daily job.

The artists now have to schedule their water puppet shows in advance to arrange alternative staff for those who cannot attend the shows. Sometimes, there are also unexpected shows. This has made Dao Thuc water puppetry artisans more professional in welcoming tourists.

In addition to enjoying water puppetry shows, tourists to Dao Thuc Village are also served lunch and visit historical sites to explore countryside landscapes. They can also experience making puppets and buy puppets as souvenirs.

Water puppetry has been practised in Dao Thuc Village for about 300 years. Over the years, the puppetry village has also gone through ups and downs, especially during the war, when performances were interrupted, puppets were lost, and many artists died. Since the early 2000s, the practice of water puppetry in Dao Thuc village has gradually been revitalised, especially since a water pavilion was built to host water puppetry shows.

About 15 years ago, a team of young people thought of renovating the operation of the puppetry guild. If there were only a few performances a year, the artisans would not remain committed, while the young generation would not want to pursue the profession. Those young people set up a website to promote puppetry online. They also provided feedback for the elders to accept the changes, especially the restructuring of performances to serve tourism and visiting travel agencies to offer their products. Many enterprises were startled, they did not think that a rural puppetry village could engage in tourism.

“Changing the way of thinking and doing things is a long process.”

The first delegations of visitors arrived to the astonishment of the villagers and the puppetry artisans themselves. But then they grew accustomed to welcoming tourists. The organisation of tours has become smoother and more professional. Besides a guide in Vietnamese, the puppetry village also produced an English audio guide to help foreign visitors better understand the art of the Vietnamese village.

Those young people are now in their 40s and 50s. Among them is Nguyen The Nghi, who was once trusted as the elected head of the guild but has now returned to his familiar job of business management.

He shared that “Changing the way of thinking and doing things is a long process. When the puppetry was doing well, it received more attention from the authorities. Dao Thuc water puppetry has become an exemplary model in Dong Anh District. Thanks to that, we have received investment to upgrade infrastructure, renovate cultural sites and better promote the traditional art. Since Hanoi adopted a resolution on developing the cultural industry, we have been further facilitated to demonstrate ourselves. Currently, many young people in the village are attending classes to learn how to perform puppetry.”

…to the revival of many forms of folk performing arts

According to statistics from the Ha Noi Department of Culture and Sports, Hanoi has 1,793 intangible cultural heritages. Of which, performing arts account for a very large number. With the expansion of administrative boundaries in 2008, Hanoi has hundreds of traditional performing arts, typically: Xam, Ca Tru, water puppetry, land puppetry, Cheo Tau, Trong Quan, Trong Bong dance, and Ai Lao singing and dancing.

With unique values and a history spanning hundreds of years, even thousands of years, traditional performing arts are invaluable intangible cultural heritages carrying the "soul" of Thang Long - Ha Noi culture.

Among them, many types are unique to Ha Noi, such as: Drum dance in Trieu Khuc (Thanh Tri District), Ai Lao singing and dancing (Phuc Loi Ward, Long Bien District), Cheo Tau (Tan Hoi Commune, Dan Phuong District), Do singing (Liep Tuyet Commune, Quoc Oai District).

Young artists of the Ca Tru Thuong Mo art troupe

 perform on stage. (Photo: Giang Nam)

However, like most other cultural heritages, folk performing arts have a "common denominator": difficulties and being negatively affected by war. Now that the country is peaceful and unified, the folk performing arts still face the risk of fading away due to the country's many economic difficulties. It was not until the country opened its borders and the economy developed that the folk performing arts gradually revived.

This revival process is closely linked to the city's policies and guidelines. The most important of these is the City Party Committee's Programme 06 on “Developing Culture, Improving the Quality of Human Resources, Building Elegant, and Civilized Hanoians” (formerly Programme 04) which has been implemented over many terms. Preserving and promoting cultural heritage values is the top priority of Programme 06. The City assigns responsibility to the cultural sector and localities to develop specific Programmes and Plans for implementation. This is the basis for many types of folk performances to revive and develop.

Ai Lao singing and dancing is a traditional ritual that only takes place at the Giong Festival (Phu Dong Village, Gia Lam District), performed by the people of the Ai Lao Ward (Hoi Xa Village, Gia Lam District — now Phuc Loi Ward, Long Bien District).

Legend has it that this is a song and dance that helps the mother of Saint Giong to ease her sadness after he ascended to heaven. During the Giong festival, Ai Lao Ward performs many songs: Singing when entering the temple to present offerings, singing to worship the Thuong temple, singing to worship the Mother Goddess temple, singing history, singing to carry the festival on the road, singing to bring the festival down to the field to enter the royal palace, singing to fish, singing about bamboo trees, singing to hunt tigers, singing to return to the temple after winning the battle, and so on.

Ai Lao singing and dancing was almost “disbanded” when the Giong festival was not held for many years, leaving only a few artisans who were eager to preserve the old songs.

The Ai Lao dance and singing almost “disbanded” when the Giong festival was not held for many years, leaving only a few artisans who were eager to preserve the old songs. When the Giong festival was held again, the Hoi Xa artisans gathered together, but many of the songs had fallen away over time because they were mainly passed down orally.

Faced with this reality, the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports and the Vietnam Folk Arts Association coordinated with artisans to collect the songs and dances. After gathering a relatively complete collection, the songs and dances were given back to the local people. Another major change that has been implemented is that in the past, the Ai Lao dance and singing were performed only during the Giong festival, but now, they are performed in the Hoi Xa Village festival. This activity helps people to be more connected and understand the heritage of their homeland.

Similar stories also happen with many other types of folk heritage. The enthusiasm of the artisans combined with the city's support policies help revive folk performances. These are the Chinese rowing tunes in Dan Phuong, the singing of Do in Quoc Oai, the "chat, tom" sounds in the Ca Tru guilds in Hoai Duc, Dong Anh...

A folk dance in Trieu Khuc. (Photo: Giang Nam)

Trong Quan singing was once on the verge of being forgotten, but it has seen a strong revival in districts Phuc Tho and Thuong Tin. Le Van Ba, Vice Chairman of the Khanh Ha Communal People's Committee (Thuong Tin District) and Head of the Trong Quan Singing Club of Khanh Ha Commune, shared that thanks to the early involvement and attention of the city authorities, Trong Quan singing in Khanh Ha Commune has been “revived” with over 300 ancient songs in various melodies being preserved and passed down, while the number of practitioners is steadily increasing. Khanh Ha Commune now has 4 artists who have been honoured with the title of "Meritorious Artisan".

The city has also organised numerous cultural and artistic programmes, along with major festivals, to introduce different forms of folk performance to the public. Notable examples include the Creative Design Festival, the Hanoi Tourism Festival, and the Hanoi Autumn Festival.
Source: NDO - en.nhandan.vn
Tags: Ha Noi, cultural industry, folk performing, water puppetry, drum dance,