Successfully building the image of Ho Chi Minh on the traditional stage is an extremely elaborate task, because in addition to the factors of acting techniques and makeup, it is also necessary to achieve the image of a Father of the nation who is both great and extraordinary but extremely humble and simple. The continuous "launch" of many outstanding stage works about Him in recent times is a testament to the spirit of creative dedication and readiness to conquer challenges of the artists of the province.
Many plays are like vivid films throughout history. In some plays, Uncle Ho is the central character throughout, while others only appear in a few scenes; some focus on an event, a typical scene, or a period in Uncle Ho's life...
First of all, we must mention the work about Uncle Ho called "Famous people grow up from folk songs and folk songs". The work tells about Uncle Ho's childhood until he left to find a way to save the country, performed on stages across the country from 1997 to 2007, winning many prestigious awards. In this play, using symbolic and stylized artistic techniques, the image of the mother, with lullabies, folk songs, and folk songs of the homeland, nurtured a great soul and personality. From the boy Nguyen Sinh Cung who grew up with the melodies of his homeland to the young man Nguyen Tat Thanh with his journey to find a way to save the country. The play also has many segments of Uncle Ho in the Northern Palace; Uncle Ho visiting his hometown.
Talking about the performances of President Ho Chi Minh, Meritorious Artist Ta Hong Duong said: To have such realistic performances, the artist must really research and invest in researching Uncle Ho's life and personality in all documents, and at the same time, must find something unique about Uncle Ho from his gestures, voice to his close mannerisms. "I myself could not help but feel pressured when I first took on the role of Uncle Ho, how could I bring out his style and form? I had to practice hundreds of times in front of the mirror, paying attention to every smallest detail such as what words Uncle Ho often used when talking to soldiers, what words he used when talking to the people of the Central and Southern regions; Uncle Ho's habit of using short sentences with a fast, clear speaking speed, and the way he often took long, quick strides when moving... And fortunately, the image of Uncle Ho that I took on stage was warmly applauded by the audience". After that, Ta Hong Duong transformed into Uncle Ho more than 100 times, each time giving him new experiences and each time he was received with warm applause from the audience in tears of missing Uncle Ho.
The second play, according to People's Artist Hong Luu, is a vivid documentary film that has lasting value over time. It is the play "His Words, the Words of the Country", which won the Special Prize in the movement to study and follow Uncle Ho. People's Artist Hong Luu said: "Five months after the play was released, the Movement "Studying and following the ideology, morality and style of President Ho Chi Minh" was a great motivation and encouragement for the collective of artists of the Provincial Traditional Arts Center at that time". After that, there were consecutive nights of performances with packed audiences, sobbing with emotion, and endless applause. Up to now, after more than 10 years since the play was released, there have been hundreds of performances from North to South, from Central to local levels.
“Every time we perform, we practice carefully for each character, many roles have only been played by one actor for more than 10 years, but every time, we are excited and prepare ourselves with the most necessary freshness. Just like that, when we go on stage, we get into character, live the life of the character and the play always reaches the highest level of success”. The scene where Uncle Ho visits his hometown, the closeness, kindness and advice of Uncle Ho are performed very well and very similar by artist Ta Hong Duong, and the audience is full of endless applause. Up to now, every time there is an important political event, the Nghe Tinh folk song play “Words of the People, Words of the Country” is requested to tour throughout the province and beyond.
To play the role of Uncle Ho, the artist not only works with professional responsibility but also with all the emotions coming from the heart. This is very true for People's Artist An Phuc, when he was chosen to play the role of Uncle Ho in "Famous people grow up from folk songs", the period of Uncle Ho's last years... An Phuc said: "Playing Uncle Ho is a challenge for the actor, but how to act so that the audience is drawn into the character, so that the audience cannot distinguish the boundary between everyday life and the stage is what makes a good actor". An Phuc also shared that he had special feelings for the beloved leader when taking on this scene, every line made him cry...
Interestingly, in addition to experienced artists, many plays also mobilize the participation of young actors when portraying the image of Uncle Ho. For example, in the play "The homeland forever echoes the name of the person", the scene of the boy Nguyen Sinh Cung with his mother and youngest brother, played by Duy Thanh, brought many tears to the audience. During the period when Meritorious Artist Ta Hong Duong was busy with work, artist Ho Minh Thong replaced him in the role of President Ho Chi Minh in "The words of the people, the words of the country", which was also warmly welcomed by the audience; Thai Duy Hai - a young actor of the troupe with a smooth, deep voice also won a Silver Medal for his role as Nguyen Sinh Cung in "The famous person grows from the folk song, the folk song". Or Nguyen Canh Sinh, an actor from Yen Thanh, was also assigned the role of Nguyen Tat Thanh in "The famous person grows from the folk song, the folk song", which was praised by the audience as "too similar".
People's Artist Hong Luu added: "To have classes to impersonate President Ho Chi Minh, the center sent staff to learn makeup to be able to impersonate the character in the best way. Actors playing Uncle Ho through the periods had the opportunity to directly meet and learn from veteran actors with the same demeanor as Uncle Ho, Meritorious Artist Tien Hoi, to be in the best acting condition."
