A number of non-profit projects have been initiated by young people across Vietnam to promote traditional art forms while keeping their values intact. These include a project on hát bội or Vietnamese classical opera, featuring more than 40 artists and approximately 100 volunteers working in different fields. The organizers wanted to invite art and culture enthusiasts to join a variety of activities, including a contemporary exhibition, a performance, and workshops.

"It’s very encouraging that there is a growing number of young Vietnamese who are passionate about exploring traditional arts and developing their values. I’m very proud to be part of their projects and happy to see how creative and passionate they are," Emeritus Artist Thanh Loc told VOV.

It has never been easy to draw young people’s attention to traditional art forms amid strong foreign cultural influences. At a recent national festival, the organizers were pleasantly surprised by the participation of many young artists whose performances have won the audience’s hearts.

"I knew nothing about this art form in the beginning. But then I like it more as I study and practice to perform. My love for it has grown big and bigger each day," said young artist Tran Thi Kim Oanh of Nguyen Hien Dinh Classical Opera Theatre in Da Nang city.

A scene in a Cheo performance.

Managers and art groups have been urged to find appropriate solutions to bring Vietnam’s traditional arts closer to young audiences. Nguyen Hien Dinh Classical Opera Theatre in Da Nang City is a prime example. Half of the theatre’s 40 artists, actors, and musicians are very young. In addition to cooperating with schools to put lessons on classical opera into curriculums for students, the theatre has brought performances on to the streets.

"We’ve achieved multiple targets by sending artists to perform on streets. In addition to promoting the art form and attract the foreign visitors, such performances have made Vietnam’s classical opera more popular among audience, especially the young ones," said Tran Ngoc Tuan, Director of the Theatre.

Meanwhile, Director Le Tuan Cuong of Vietnam Cheo Theatre said: "I think young Vietnamese are all fond of traditional arts. Amid strong international integration, they will select and promote certain values they find appropriate. Traditional arts bear inside so many lessons on life which have been familiar to many generations of Vietnamese people."