Drama theater strives to bring history closer to young audiences

After more than 10 years, the play “The Secret of Le Chi Garden”, scripted by Hoang Huu Dan and adapted by Meritorious Artist Thanh Loc with the participation of a cast including Thanh Loc, Huu Chau, Tu Trinh, Thanh Thuy, Hong Anh, Hoang Trinh, My Duyen, Tuan Khoi… will return with a new version called Le Chi Vien! (The Secret of Le Chi Garden)”.

This time, the play still has the participation of some actors who participated in previous productions. Artists Thanh Thuy and Hoang Trinh once again take on the roles of Concubines Nguyen Thi Anh and Nguyen Thi Lo. Artist Hong Anh plays the role of Concubine Ngo Thi Ngoc Dao. Meritorious Artist Dai Nghia plays the role of Ta Thanh, artist Dinh Toan takes on the dual roles of King Thai Tong and King Thanh Tong. Artist Quang Thao takes on the role of Nguyen Trai and also edits and directs the play.

To prepare for the play, the creative team including the director, costume team, and producer took a field trip to Bac Ninh - home to the Con Son - Kiep Bac relic site, Nguyen Trai Temple (Chi Linh, Hai Duong), Le Chi Vien (Gia Binh, Bac Ninh), Quoc Tu Giam ( Hanoi ), some northern pagodas and temples, and met with historical costume designers in Hue to learn and consult on how to restore the play as close to history as possible.

According to director Quang Thao, “Le Chi Vien! (The Secret of the Lychee Garden)” is not only a personal tragedy but also reflects the reality of a dynasty with many conflicts, intrigues, the decline of morality and faith - topics that are still relevant today. The main goal of the theater when recreating the play is to spread the spirit of love for history to the younger generation.

The play “Lè Chi Viên! (The Secret of the Lè Chi Garden)” features a number of actors who have participated in previous productions. Photo: Idecaf

Sharing with Vietnam Law Newspaper after the review session in Ho Chi Minh City, Quang Thao expressed: "If I say I am not satisfied, it might be a bit unfair to myself, because we did our best within our ability, preparation conditions and time.

As a director, I am satisfied with the cast, the costumes, the scenery, but in terms of the actors, in the first performance as both director and actor, I was a bit distracted and worried, so it was not complete. Overall, we have done 80% and the rest will definitely be completed over time.

For me, this is the version that until now, I feel I was right in choosing the "key" to make this version. The key here is that a political script when making will be difficult, because it must follow historical truth, but in order for young audiences of this era to accept and watch, it must be entertaining, including costumes, music , lighting, and editing techniques to be close to the audience.

Regarding the play's use of some somewhat modern words, the director said that this was in the script. He himself was surprised that the author Hoang Huu Dan wrote the play in 1962 but used words very close to the times.

“There are some historical plays that use Han Nom words, but some of them are difficult to understand, and when you watch them you may not be able to fully understand the meaning. Every time you don’t understand, the audience’s emotions will gradually decrease and it will be difficult to absorb. So the way we aim for is: “Doing ancient plays but choosing a more approachable way of telling them” (using easier-to-understand words and character behavior), because this is not a political play of a scientific nature, it is still an entertainment play. We still sell tickets, still want people to support the entertainment direction, so we have to be a bit gentle.”

Responding to reporters about the issue of rejuvenating actors to reach more young audiences, Quang Thao confided: “There is a rule of art that when you are too young, you will not have enough experience. An 18-year-old actor can hardly play an 18-year-old historical character because he does not have enough experience, enough acting experience, transformation and acting. This is a common problem not only in Vietnam but also in the world of art that is difficult to do. If we talk about rejuvenation, it will probably be partly due to the age of the actors, but for the most part we will rejuvenate in terms of language, staging, approach and promotion.”

“Ly Chi Vien! (The Secret of Ly Chi Garden)” is scheduled to premiere on May 1 in Ho Chi Minh City.

Lychee Garden is one of the famous mysteries in Vietnamese history. In 1442, King Le Thai Tong, when he was only 20 years old, went on a tour of the East and visited Lychee Garden, a lychee garden in Nguyen Trai’s hometown (now in Bac Ninh province). Here, the king suddenly passed away during the night.

Immediately afterwards, Nguyen Trai and his wife Nguyen Thi Lo were charged with “attempting to assassinate the king”. All three members of Nguyen Trai’s family were executed. More than 20 years later (in 1464), King Le Thanh Tong (son of Le Thai Tong) after ascending the throne reviewed the case and exonerated Nguyen Trai, affirming that he was a loyal subject who had been wrongly murdered.

Official history books from then until now have recorded him as one of the victims of the "Le Chi Vien mystery".

Nha An

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/san-khau-kich-no-luc-dua-lich-su-den-gan-khan-gia-tre-post545578.html