Hoi An to set up water puppetry stage on Hoai River
PSNews - The Hoi An Municipal People's Committee decided to promote the water puppetry art as a special tourist product to serve the needs of domestic and foreign visitors when visiting the ancient town.
Director of the Hoi An Cultural Center Vo Phung announced the above information on May 9. He shared that the Hoi An authorities are planning to set up a water puppetry stage on the Hoai river, in the center of Hoi An.
Phung also said that the plan will soon be implemented, creating favorable conditions for visitors to enjoy this folk art in an authentic manner.
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| Photo for illustration. |
In September 2015, the Hoi An Municipal People's Committee started performances of the water puppetry art at the Hoi An Theater. They received many positive feedbacks from local people as well as tourists. Therefore, the city has decided to promote this traditional art as a new tourist product.
As planned, the water puppetry program on the Hoai river will be on stage on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday every week. Tickets for adults and children will be VND 80,000 and 40,000 respectively.
Water puppetry is a form of folk arts originating in the Red River Delta in the north of Vietnam, dating back in the 11th century. Many town and villages in Vietnam have communal ponds that are perfect stages for these impromptu performances, enhancing the widespread development of the art form.
Currently, water puppetry is showed in a pool of water with the water surface being the stage.
Puppets are made of wood and then lacquered to be watertight and endurable. During performances, puppets are controlled via a pole-and string apparatus hidden under the water surface by puppeteers standing in waist-deep water behind the stage. While puppets play their roles according to the direction of puppeteers, artists sing songs to tell the story in words.
Above all, water puppetry created a relaxing space for rural citizens in the past; both watching and playing water puppetry was a good way for the local to entertain, escaping from their daily worries and hardworking life.
