Folk opera of Nghe An province and new expectations.

From glorious milestones

From the 1970s to the present, the Provincial Traditional Arts Center has consistently been among the winners of Gold Medals at professional theater festivals. This is thanks to serious investment in scripts, directing, sound and lighting, scenery, and actors. With "Drowning in the Whirlpool," the center won 2 individual Gold Medals, 1 Gold Medal for the entire performance, 3 individual Silver Medals, and 1 Outstanding Music Award. Musician Quoc Chung - Director of the Center - said that choosing themes from pressing issues of people's lives, along with scripts specifically written for the folk singing and <i>ví giặm</i> genre, was the direction they had set from the beginning.

From its 2024 plan, the Center has set the goal of winning 2 to 3 gold medals at the 2025 National Traditional Opera and Folk Drama Festival as a key objective. The biggest challenge lies in the casting of actors for the various roles. The Center has over 40 veteran actors, of whom about 10 regularly play leading and supporting roles. They are all familiar faces from numerous festivals, making the task of reimagining the characters a difficult one.

But thanks to experience and bold innovations in stage design, music, scenery, and the actors' performances, the play exceeded expectations. People's Artist An Ninh, who adapted the script, said: "The play has many dramatic scenes and complex psychological moments. Especially the inner turmoil of the beauty queen caught in the whirlwind of money and power by a cunning director, or the pain of a wife when her husband falls into crime."

To portray the depth of the characters, he meticulously studied the adaptation of the melodies: where to use the four-part verses, where to use the "lập lơ" form, and where to incorporate call-and-response verses. This process created the unique character of Nghe Tinh folk opera and contributed to the success of the play.

Mr. An Ninh believes that the development of folk opera on stage over the past decades is a strategic step for the province's cultural sector. From traditional theatrical forms, the professional team has preserved and revitalized the heritage, bringing folk opera into the professional theatrical space.

Since the Ví and Giặm folk songs were recognized by UNESCO as a Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2014, preservation and promotion efforts have received even greater attention. Alongside this, a series of theatrical performances have emerged, leaving a deep impression on both domestic and international audiences.

Nghe Tinh folk opera has overcome many changes in musical tastes during the market economy era, and to this day still affirms its position as an important genre of professional theater with a series of achievements. From the Gold Medal at the 1970 National Professional Theater Festival with the play "Not Me," the Gold Medal in 1985 with "Mai Thuc Loan," the Gold Medal in 1996 with "Round Footprints in the Storm," the Gold Medal in 2005 with "Looking into the Past," the Gold Medal in 2010 with "One Tree Does Not Make a Forest," the Gold Medal in 2012 with "The Race in the Darkness," to the Gold Medal in 2016 with "Teacher and Student."

Recently, the play "The Stork in the Storm" won the Gold Medal at the 2022 National Traditional Opera and Folk Drama Festival, creating a sensation due to its topical theme and mature acting. This was also the last performance of People's Artist Hong Luu as Director of the Center before her retirement.

To build upon those successes

Despite its many achievements, Nghe An folk opera currently faces numerous difficulties, especially regarding theatrical release. While in the past a single performance could attract thousands of viewers, today the majority of the audience for folk opera is limited to a small group of genuine enthusiasts. Meritorious Artist Ta Duong, Deputy Director of the Center, stated that the Center is striving to rekindle the love for folk opera among young people, aiming for more ticketed performances, but achieving this is not easy. This is partly because the art form has not yet reached the younger generation, and partly because many veteran actors are aging, making it difficult to generate new appeal.

Attracting young talent is also challenging. Young people with talent in folk singing and formal training often don't choose to join the Center. Therefore, in previous years, the average age of performers was around 38 to 40. Now, the Center has adopted a new approach: seeking young talent from folk singing clubs in wards and communes; attracting those with genuine talent and a desire for long-term commitment. This is considered the most feasible solution at present.

Folk opera is a vibrant traditional art form, but to reach younger generations, it requires innovation in thinking and approach. People's Artist Minh Tuệ shared: "We cannot simply rely on old methods and wait for natural integration; we must boldly change the performance space and move towards new forms. Similar to what spoken drama in the South or traditional opera in the North are doing: bringing artistic performances to diverse spaces and expanding the audience."

Despite consistently winning awards at festivals and receiving high praise from experts, for Nghe An folk opera to find its place in the entertainment industry, it still needs newer, more creative approaches that are more suitable to the tastes of today's young audience.