National cải lương festival honours play on guru of the art

Chất Ngọc – Cầm Thi Giang (The Guru of Cải Lương) of the Cần Thơ City-based Tây Đô Theatre, featuring the life and career of Mộc Quán, who had great contribution in developing cải lương in the South, won the Best Play at the 2024 National Cải Lương Festival held from October 25-November 15 in Cần Thơ City. VNA/VNS Photo Trung Kiên

CẦN THƠ – The cải lương (reformed opera) play portraying playwright Mộc Quán, who made a great contribution to developing the art in the southern region, was named the Best Play at the biennial National Cải Lương Festival closed on Friday night in Cần Thơ City.

The play tilted Chất Ngọc – Cầm Thi Giang (The Guru of Cải Lương) staged by the city-based Tây Đô Theatre features the life and career of Mộc Quán (1876-1953), a native of Cần Thơ, who had great contribution in developing cải lương in the South.

The playwright, whose real name was Nguyễn Trọng Tuyền, was a writer and director of the most prestigious cải lương troupes in the South in the early 20th century.

He wrote 90 cải lương and tuồng (classical drama) plays, published seven poetry books, and created more than 100 poems.

He taught the region’s leading cải lương artists Huỳnh Năng Nhiêu, Kim Cúc, Kim Lan, and Phùng Há.

The play features Lê Duy as Mộc Quán, and artists from the Tây Đô Theatre.

The Best Play awards were also given to Xuân Hương Nữ Sĩ (Poet Hồ Xuân Hương) of the Hà Nội Cải Lương Theatre honouring “the Queen of Nôm Poetry”, Người Con Của Rừng Tràm (Son of the Melaleuca Forest) of the Long An Province Cải Lương Troupe highlighting the life and career of revolutionary Trương Văn Ban, and San Hô Đỏ (Red Coral) of the HCM City-based Trần Hữu Trang Cải Lương Theatre praising soldiers protecting the national sovereignty over seas and islands.

Tạ Quang Đông, deputy minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism praised the troupes for bringing to the festival quality plays highlighting diverse topics of the country's history, resistance war, and social issues in today's society.

Đông suggested that the Performing Arts Department cooperate with the provincial departments of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and art troupes to attract and train new generations of artists to develop cải lương in the future.

The organisers granted 41 awards for best actor, actress, director, playwright, composer, choreographer and many others.

The festival was launched by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in collaboration with the Cần Thơ People’s Committee from October 25 to November 15.

It attracted more than 1,000 artists from 29 private and State-owned traditional art troupes and theatres across the country, presenting 33 plays. — VNS