Why are comedy roles in reformed opera increasingly rare?

People's Artist Hung Minh

In the last days of 2023, People's Artist Hung Minh said that on the development path of the reformed theater stage, a unique and charming comedy talent has been formed by many artists specializing in this type of role.

Nowadays, not to mention the fact that the cai luong stage rarely has good scripts, comedic roles for young actors and the way to perform to bring out pure, meaningful laughter is still a big gap.

Looking back at the artists who have created prestige when coming to the field of comedy roles, we will see that they have created unforgettable impressions of laughter through the way they portray their characters.

"I am not an artist who specializes in comedy roles, but in the play "Ben Cau Det Lua" by playwright The Chau, Bao Quoc and I were assigned the roles of Tat Dao and Hieu Danh. At first, I was very worried, but through discussions with Bao Quoc, I acted very confidently, making the role bring laughter thanks to the research process" - People's Artist Hung Minh said.

People's Artist Hung Minh

It is the research on roles that has created the awareness that helps artists create laughter for memorable roles such as: Boss of clams (People's Artist Giang Chau - play "Ngao so oc hen"), Quan huyen Chia (People's Artist Thanh Dien - play "Ngao so oc hen"), Tieu dong (late artist Kim Ngoc - play "Trang vo vuon Thuy"), Bay can va (People's Artist Ngoc Giau - play "Doi co Luu"), fortune teller (People's Artist Thanh Tong - play "Ganh canh Trang Nguyen"), Blind knight (Meritorious Artist Bao Quoc - play of the same name helped comedian Bao Quoc win the Thanh Tam Gold Medal in 1972), Hau (artist Kieu Mai Ly - play "Chuyen co Bat Trang"), Mrs. Tam selling sweet soup (artist Hong Nga - play "Ben phe ky niem")...

There are many, many more clown artists who were the "brands" of 22 reformed art units in the 80s in Ho Chi Minh City such as: Hoang Giang, Tu Rom, He Minh, Van Chung, Bao Chung, Linh Trung, Bo Bo Hoang, Bach Long, Mai Lan, To Kieu Lan, Vu Duc, He Sa, My Chi, Phu Quy, Hong To...

"To this day, some of them are still alive, some have passed away, but whenever the comedy roles of the cai luong stage are mentioned, the audience will immediately remember the characters that create laughter associated with the names of the actors" - People's Artist Hung Minh expressed.

People's Artist Hung Minh when he was young

People's Artist Hung Minh said: "At that time, I only performed a short class. The first performance did not make the audience laugh, and I was sweating. To perform comedy, you have to study the comedy role with aesthetic laughter, bringing the value of spreading positivity. It's not like you can just go on stage and say or sing anything. To successfully perform a comedy role is very stressful."

Nowadays, according to experts, on the cai luong stage, actors are assigned comedy roles, sometimes they are not suitable for the role and lack charm, so when they go on stage they act too confidently, leading to acting rough to create laughter.

Not to mention the way of acting using body language, mocking people with disabilities, people with speech impediments, and using people's defects to make fun of is unacceptable.

To understand comedy in its true sense, bringing profound and insightful laughter, according to People's Artist Hung Minh, equipping cai luong actors with knowledge is a big gap for them to be able to assert their strengths.

The lack of seriousness and hasty practice led to rough and joking, making the comedy role lose its charm. People's Artist Hung Minh believes that meaningful laughter is expressed at the right time.

Sometimes, just a small movement, a short performance but highlighting the charm of the right situation that the actor knows how to exploit will create an impressive comedy role.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/nsnd-hung-minh-vi-sao-vai-hai-cai-luong-ngay-cang-hiem-196231215064249124.htm