

Many of the skits, especially those involving the tales of day-to-day living, often have a humorous twist. Todays Vietnamese water puppetry is a unique variation on the ancient Asian puppet tradition. Legends and national history are also told through short skits. Stories of the harvest, of fishing and of festivals are highlighted. It tells of day-to-day living in rural Vietnam and Vietnamese folk tales that are told by grandparents to their grandchildren. The theme of the skits is rural and has a strong reference to Vietnamese folklore. Spotlights and colorful flags adorn the stage and create a festive atmosphere. Water puppetry is one of typical stage art of Vietnam culture- showing the intelligence, creativeness of people being specialty of Vietnams wet-rice. The puppets enter from either side of the stage, or emerge from the murky depths of the water. The musicians and the puppets interact during performance the musicians may yell a word of warning to a puppet in danger or a word of encouragement to a puppet in need. Singers of chèo (a form of opera originating in north Vietnam) sing songs which tell the story being acted out by the puppets. The bamboo flute's clear, simple notes may accompany royalty while the drums and cymbals may loudly announce a fire-breathing dragon's entrance. The instrumentation includes vocals, drums, wooden bells, cymbals, horns, đàn bầu (monochord), gongs, and bamboo flutes. Ī traditional Vietnamese orchestra provides background music accompaniment. Vietnamese water puppetry is a tradition that dates to the 11th century when. It also hides the puppet strings and puppeteer movements, improves the musical and vocal acoustics, and provides a shimmering lighting effect. Visit the Hanoi Water Puppet Show as part of your Vietnam Vacation. The water acts as the stage for the puppets, and as a symbolic link to the rice harvest.

The original water puppet festivals were literally held inside a rice paddy, with a pagoda built on top to hide the puppeteers who stand in the waist-deep water.

Rice, the main staple of the Vietnamese diet, is usually grown in paddy fields. The puppets are carved out of wood and often weigh up to 15 kg. Up to 8 puppeteers stand behind a split-bamboo screen, decorated to resemble a temple facade, and control the puppets using long bamboo rods and string mechanism hidden beneath the water surface.
#VIETNAMS WATER PUPPETRY PORTABLE#
Performance today occurs on one of three venues-on traditional ponds in villages where a staging area has been set up, on portable tanks built for traveling performers, or in a specialized building where a pool stage has been constructed.

Modern water puppetry is performed in a pool of water 4 meters square with the water surface being the stage. Later, explore the Old Quarter by yourself or get a. The players were presenting themselves at the end of the show. Take a break to enjoy a water puppet show that demonstrates a well-loved traditional Vietnamese art form.
#VIETNAMS WATER PUPPETRY PROFESSIONAL#
The orchestra is manned by an array of talented singers accompanied by professional musicians performing with traditional musical instruments.A water puppet theater show in Hanoi, Vietnam. You will also enjoy the Vietnamese orchestra, which provides the background music for the show. It is considered as one of the most traditional and important parts of Vietnamese culture. The stage is decorated with flags, fans, parasols. They perform each pole, rope…puppets with the system of ropes arranged outside or under water. The artisans inside the cabin control puppets. The shows are extremely professional, consisting of 7 to 11 puppeteers, seated deep. Puppets are made from light timbers, are carved, polished and decorated with different colours to demonstrate the clear personalities of each character Water puppetry is a unique Vietnamese art form performed in a large pool using the water as a stage. The modern-day water puppetry theatre is called Thuy Dinh in Vietnamese. After dinner, we will make our way to the theatre to enjoy the Water Puppet Show. We will begin our evening with a wonderful dinner at a lovely local restaurant. Visit: Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theater, 55B Nguyen Thi Minh Khai District 1, Ho Chi Minh City 700000 Vietnam
