Puppeteer Phan Thanh Liem is taking part in the project Teu A Teu Oi (Stories of Uncle Teu), which aims to preserve Vietnamese water puppetry. It is managed by a group of students called Teu Team in HCM City. (Photo courtesy of Teu Team) The project, Teu A Teu Oi (Stories of Uncle Teu), is led by a group of studentscalled Teu Team from the FPT Polytechnic College. They work with puppeteer PhanThanh Liem, who has 20 years of experience in the art, to manage the project.
The project, which aims to introduce and expose young people to Vietnamesewater puppetry, will offer online information, paintings, photos and videosfeaturing performances and artists of water puppetry.
Talks by experts about Vietnamese puppetry and its history and developmentduring various periods will also be included.
“We hope Vietnamese at home and abroad, particularly young people, will learnabout the country’s history, culture and lifestyle through traditionalpuppetry,” said Nguyen Ngoc Bao Quynh, head of the group Teu Team.
“Our project, Teu A Teu Oi, introduces puppetry performances featuringcharacters from Vietnamese fairy tales, highlighting themes of love,friendship, bravery, self-respect and honesty, and contains messages aboutpatriotism and national heroes.”
In Vietnam, water puppetry has its origins in the 11th century in the Red RiverDelta of the North where the wet-rice civilisation took shape. It is performedon a stage in a pool of water.
The performance is often organised in traditional festivals and holidaysattracting local villagers, especially children. Colourful puppets are made ofwood and covered with red lacquer trimmed with gold, and controlled from thechamber next to the stage by strings and underwater nests.
In HCM City, only two private theatres Phuong Nam Theatre and Rong Van WaterPuppet Troupe offer water puppetry shows.
The Rong Vang Puppet Troupe opened in 2015 and has worked with local and foreigntourist agencies in the city to introduce their art to visitors. They have alsocooperated with many schools in the region to offer free shows for students.
The troupe has participated in many cultural exchanges and art festivals athome and abroad.
Its featured shows are based on traditional legends including Teu, Danh Ca TrenSong (Fishing on the River) and Bac Ba Phi (Uncle Ba Phi). The performancescombine the traditional genres of circus and puppetry as well as traditionalmusic./.
VNA
