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| A water puppet show at The Thang Long Water Puppet Theater in Hanoi - Photo: My Tran |
I was in Hanoi earlier this month, and saw a line with foreigners queuing to buy tickets for a puppet show at Thang Long Water Puppet Theater so I joined in. It was the first time I have seen a puppet performance in a theater and I loved it. I love the traditional culture of my country’s wet rice civilization.
As I walked in and found a seat, I was surprised by solemn atmosphere as though people were in an opera house. The stage was striking with a floating red house built in Vietnamese temple style with curved roofs. There was a big flag like the flag of Tay Son troop on the left and a red lantern on the right.
In front of the house was a water stage where the puppets perform.
Mua Roi Nuoc or Water Puppetry is a unique art which originated in the Red river delta in the tenth century. In ancient times, the ponds and rice paddies after harvest were the stage for these impromptu shows. Modern water puppetry is performed in theaters.
After a brief introduction, singers of cheo (a form of opera) together with a traditional Vietnamese orchestra using ethnic musical instruments started to perform. The singers used a Northern accent so I could not understand everything. The audience applauded when the puppets appeared.
The puppeteers stand behind a screen and control the puppets using long bamboo rods and a string mechanism hidden beneath thewater surface. The puppets are carved out of wood and often weigh up to 15 kg. The troupe sings songs and makes the sound effects to bring the puppets’ story to life.
I looked around the room and found that most of the audience were foreigners. So like me, I thought they did not understand what the troupe was singing and talking about but we could understand the story because of the puppets.
The show brought to life scenes of Vietnamese working all year round in rice farms. The puppets plant rice and then harvest. They raise ducks and protect them from foxes and snakes. The show also featured daily rural activities such as swimming in the river, the rendezvous of couples.Despite the hardships of farming, they also enjoyed life by holding boat races, singing and dance competitions and folk festivals.
I was especially impressed with the legend of the Sword Lake. King Le Loi took out the sword he had tucked in his waistband after his victory. He respectfully raised the weapon above his head. Suddenly the tortoise took the sword and disappeared into the water, but the luster of the sword remained and spread over the surface of the water. Since that time, the lake has been named Ho Guom (Sword Lake) or Ho Hoan Kiem (Restored Sword Lake). During that part of the performance I felt like I was back in elementary class listening to the legend being told by my teacher who I loved so much.
The show lasted for one hour but it reminded me of all the history about Vietnamese wet-rice civilization. That life, I thought, must be so simple.
At the entrance was a display of puppets and instruments used in water puppetry.
If I come to Hanoi again I will surely return to the theater to meet the puppets again. The Thang Long Water Puppets Theater is located at 57B Dinh Tien Hoang Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi.
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