Arigato 'Princess Anio'

During the ten-minute long applause at the end of the play Princess Anio , there was applause from the Japanese Crown Prince and his wife, as well as cheers from the audience in Japanese "arigato", which means "thank you" in Vietnamese.

V is a beautiful performer

In the opening scene of the opera Princess Anio , the backdrop of the Hanoi Opera House, which was filled with waves, suddenly split in two to let a Japanese merchant ship sail out. On it were Japanese people who crossed the sea to trade with the world. They crossed the East Sea to Dang Trong (now Central Vietnam). Hoi An was then a bustling international trading port.

Princess Anio shows the talent of many Vietnamese opera artists

BTC

With stage director Koizumi Hiroshi, stage artist Ito Masako…, the story of Princess Anio was told through images rich in Japanese culture. The waves crashing on the ship were depicted through dance with wide, winding blue sleeves…

Throughout the story of Princess Anio , it can be seen that each image is carefully selected to be able to describe in the most conventional way the cultural region of each scene. Hoi An appears very quickly with only two strings of lanterns crossing high above the stage. Princess Anio's new hometown with a house with a typical Japanese sliding door. Princess Anio's origin as well as her love for her homeland is shown in the ao dai that she and her daughter wear from the beginning to the end of the play.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang, Japanese Crown Prince Akishino and Japanese Princess Kiko attended the play's premiere.

VNA

Princess Anio is a rare musical and theatrical collaboration between Vietnam and Japan. The best singers, talented musicians and lyricists, imaginative choreographers and painters, and the most skillful orchestra have been together for a long time... They have worked together since Princess Anio was just an idea, the first notes, until the first performance on September 22nd, when the work became a beautiful performance in every aspect...

Each emotional cultural detail flows continuously like a subtle undercurrent in the performances. The Japanese and Vietnamese audiences are there, so they seem to melt with each musical note, each soaring lyric when the characters are happy or struggling with longing, pain and then bursting with hope. Sometimes the musical parallels sung make everyone feel the sincerity of both the composer, lyricist and singer. One of those scenes is when Princess Anio sings a lullaby to her daughter, A father's love is like Mount Tai , and the neighbor sings a Japanese lullaby with the lyrics , Dream sweetly, my child .

Connecting Vietnamese and Japanese culture and history

The opera Princess Anio is inspired by the true story between merchant Araki Sotaro from Nagasaki (Japan) and Princess Ngoc Hoa of the Nguyen Lords. The play therefore also has many historical advisors, including Dr. Phan Hai Linh, who won a history award for his thesis on Japanese manors. On the Japanese side, the advisors include: Tomoda Hiromichi, Fukukawa Yuichi, Kikuchi Seiichi, Ando Katsuhiro, Honma Sadao.

There are many details in the play that recall real artifacts in the Japanese Museum. For example, the image of the Japanese ship reminds of the painting of a merchant ship by Araki Sotaro that is now on display at the Museum of Marine Science. The detail of the princess's mother giving her daughter a mirror to take to Japan reminds of the mirror of Mrs. Araki Sotaro, now in the collection of the Nagasaki Museum of Cultural History.

Now, in addition to the artifacts in the museum, we have another "living artifact" about the Vietnam - Japan cultural exchange. That is the play Princess Anio . Notably, on the first night of the play's announcement, Japanese Crown Prince Akishino and Japanese Princess Kiko were present at the best seats at the Hanoi Opera House. The performance was also attended by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang, Head of the Steering Committee for organizing activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Vietnam - Japan diplomatic relations. This further demonstrates the cultural, historical and diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Princess Anio Arigato. Today, the palanquin procession welcoming Princess Anio continues to be recreated in the Goshuin-shoin scene held every seven years at the Nagasaki Kunchi festival in Nagasaki. Princess Anio Arigato as her story has become a beautiful work of art, where both Vietnamese and Japanese cultures shine.

The opera Princess Anio was produced by the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra and the Princess Anio Executive Board (Brain Group, Yamaha Music Vietnam Co., Ltd., NPO International Exchange Promotion Association) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Japan. The general director of Princess Anio is conductor Honna Tetsuji.

Princess Anio will be performed at the Hanoi Opera House for three nights, from September 22 to 24. Then, on September 27, the work will be presented to the public in Hung Yen at the provincial convention center. In November, the Japanese public premiere will be held at Hitomi Memorial Hall (Showa Women's University, Tokyo).

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