(VOVworld) - The Vietnam Tuong (Classical Opera) Theatre has launched an interactive art program called "Royal Palace Night”, targeting foreign visitors. The interactive art program is another landmark accomplishment of the national theater.

A scene in the "Royal Palace Night” show (Photo: dantri)

"Royal Palace Night” is performed in Hong Ha theatre in downtown Hanoi, which is frequented by foreign visitors. The program is comprised of two parts. The first part introduces Vietnam’s traditional Tuong (classical opera) costumes, disguises, artists’ make-u, and props. The second part features famous Tuong scenes like “An old man carrying his wife on his back to a festival” and “Unicorn dance”.      

Pham Ngoc Tuan, Director of the Vietnam Tuong Theatre, explains: “Our creative team wants to change by involving all Tuong art spaces on the stage. The program is subtitled in English and hosted by an MC, who is also a Tuong character. Hosts explain the context of the scenes and point out some cultural features of Tuong theater”.       

Program director Dang Ba Tai says it’s difficult to present Tuong to foreigners because of language barriers. They have to address this challenge by entertaining foreign tourists music and dance rather than dialogue. People’s artist Minh Gai who performs in the play “Ho Nguyet Co turns into a fox” told VOV:     “Watching Tuong means watching artists singing, dancing and acting. Because foreigners don’t understand the Vietnamese language, we have to use body language. The lines are cut and more body language is introduced to convey the Tuong art’s messages”.            

Ronan Sack, an American tourist, shares his feelings after watching traditional Tuong extracts: “I deeply believe that the reconciliation of a country is only possible by being connected to culture. In today’s world, as we need a better understanding of each other, the most important thing is to learn about each other’s culture. The main impression is the unbelievable profession of having both art and history expressed in lines between the musicians and the actors. This helps the audience to understand how important it is for society to grow”.

"Royal Palace Night” program is the latest effort by the Vietnam Tuong Theatre in the last 6 years of seeking to approach the foreign audiences, who  buy tickets to Tuong performance. People’s artist Huong Thom is Deputy Director of the theatre: “We perform twice a week on Monday and Thursday. There are 3 programs tailored to foreign tourists’ needs. In the near future, we will produce more programs to serve visitors and preserve Vietnamese traditional art”.