Bringing traditional art into tourism development

Enjoy intangible heritage through tours

Welcoming the spring, at the space of the Cultural and Artistic Center 22 Hang Buom (Hanoi), the Cai Luong Theater's "Sweet Starfruit Branch" play left many emotions and impressions on visitors. "Sweet Starfruit Branch" is a play in the project to build "Performing art programs associated with the space of Hanoi's Old Quarter to serve tourists" directed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The play takes the audience back to the 1930s, when our people had to live under two layers of oppression. The play recalls the painful memories of the past to see the true value of independence, autonomy, peace and social stability today, thereby promoting the spirit of great solidarity, towards a new era, the era of the Vietnamese people's rise.

In this play, the director and creative team used selected melodies of Cai Luong music such as: Vong Co, Nam Ai, Van Thien Tuong, Kim Tien Ban, Bai Ha, Xang Xe, cac melodies, cac nho... In addition, musician Trong Dai included 8 newly composed songs based on traditional and folk sounds such as ve, dong nhi, Bac Bo folk songs and even filial music... creating an extremely interesting musical feast, satisfying not only audiences who love Cai Luong but also audiences who are new to Cai Luong. Director, People's Artist Trieu Trung Kien shared: "Canh Khe Ngot" was originally a pure Cai Luong script, but when put into a program to serve tourists, we included a lot of traditional folk cultural materials from the way of life, customs and festivals of the Vietnamese people. The form of new and old music has existed before, but putting many songs into a Cai Luong play has hardly been applied. Therefore, this experiment also aims to reach more new audiences, especially young audiences. Young people, domestic and international tourists will feel the similarities between traditional Vietnamese theatrical art and world musical genres. In the future, the Theater will complete the introduction and subtitles in English to serve foreign audiences.

On this occasion, the live performance art program "Vietnam - Legendary epic: Thang Long - Tu Tran" was also held at the Central area of ​​Thang Long Imperial Citadel. Thang Long - Tu Tran is associated with the birth of Thang Long capital during the Ly Dynasty in the year 1010, is the legend and existing relic of 4 sacred guardian gods guarding Thang Long citadel: Bach Ma, Voi Phuc, Kim Lien, Quan Thanh. These are also considered the 4 most sacred temples in the capital because of their history and cultural beauty in the beliefs of the Vietnamese people. "Thang Long - Tu Tran" has the participation of 6 theaters including: Vietnam Circus Federation, Vietnam Drama Theater, Vietnam Cai Luong Theater, Vietnam Puppetry Theater, Vietnam Cheo Theater and Vietnam Tuong Theater.

Also ordered by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Vietnam Puppetry Theatre has launched a play called “Kidney Song”, combining traditional puppetry and modern breath. The play “Kidney Song” (author: Duong Dung, director: People’s Artist Nguyen Tien Dung) is inspired by children’s songs - the intangible cultural treasure of the nation.

It would be remiss not to mention the program “Art performance associated with the space of the ancient town” produced by the Vietnam Tuong Theater and performed at Hong Ha Theater. Here, audiences and visitors can immerse themselves in the art space with many senses: seeing the performance costumes and various traditional props and musical instruments; hearing about the history and development of Tuong as well as understanding more about this special type of theater.

In particular, before the performance began, the program also introduced the characters in the play such as: Ta On Dinh, Khuong Linh Ta, Dong Kim Lan and Loi Phong. Each character was described in detail from appearance to personality. The audience enjoyed two excerpts from "On Dinh chops Ta" and "Kim Lan passes the pass", two classic plays, the most exemplary in traditional Tuong art. The audience saw typical Tuong performance techniques such as: spear dance, open hands, bent legs, horse-catching dance combinations... In early 2025, the Vietnam Tuong Theater plans to sell tickets for art programs, with a frequency of about 1 - 4 shows/month to serve tourists as well as audiences who love Tuong.

Bringing traditional art closer to international visitors

Hanoi is the locality with the largest concentration of theaters in the country, and is the place to preserve and develop traditional folk cultural forms such as cheo, tuong, cai luong, ca tru, quan ho, water puppetry, etc. Currently, the number of foreigners coming to live, study, work and travel in Vietnam in general, and Hanoi in particular, is increasing. So why don't we seize this opportunity to introduce cultural features as well as traditional art forms to them?

Always concerned with that question, in recent years, the Tuong, Cheo, Cai Luong, Drama theaters have sought many new directions to attract not only Vietnamese audiences but also international audiences. The tourism industry has more destinations that are truly attractive to foreign visitors, and at the same time, traditional national cultural forms are also introduced, preserved and better developed.

However, to make it easier for international visitors to appreciate the art, theaters need to pay more attention to the translation. Because the translation is the "soul" of the plays. Vietnamese language and meaning are very diverse and rich, sometimes even containing hidden meanings. Meanwhile, with English, they only understand in one direction, so if they cannot find the equivalent meaning, visitors will understand it in a different way. Therefore, theaters need to choose translators who are truly knowledgeable about the art of Cai Luong, Cheo, Tuong, and Drama and are fluent in English to be able to convey the correct intonation, helping the audience understand the drama and content of the program completely...

With the continuous "debut" of artistic "specialties", Hanoi theaters hope to always be lit up, bustling with visitors entering the theater to enjoy the unique intangible heritages of Vietnam in general and Hanoi in particular.

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/dua-nghe-thuat-truyen-thong-vao-phat-trien-du-lich-post537137.html