Vietnamese Water Puppet (Mua Roi Nuoc)

History:

Vietnamese Water Puppet originated from the Red River Delta of Vietnam in the tenth century. Some of the earliest troupes are in Nguyên Xá commune, Đông Hưng district, Thai Binh province. Water puppetry is deeply imbued with the cultural characteristics of the people of this area. This unique art first appeared around the 15^th century, when post-harvest, artists who were also farmers would gather to perform and relax. The custom remains today in many localities in the Red River Delta such as Dao Thuc, Phu Da, Dong Ca, Nguyen Xa, Dong Ngu, Nhan Hoa and Nam Chan.

In ancient Vietnam, the rural Vietnamese believed that spirits controlled all aspects of their life, from the kitchen to the rice paddies. That is the reason why the farmers in this region devised a form of entertainment and worship to satisfy these spirits. Water puppetry is the lively creation of farmers who spent their days in flooded rice fields. At some point, they discovered that the water was an excellent medium for puppetry: it not only concealed the puppeteers' rod and string mechanisms, but it also provided exciting effects like waves and splashes.

When water puppetry became more popular, villages competed against each other with their puppet shows. This led puppet societies to be secretive and exclusive, including an initiation ceremony that involved drinking rooster blood.

So far this art form has been unique to North Vietnam. Tourists can enjoy this kind of art all days in a week at Thang Long Puppet Theatre, which is the most well known one in Ha Noi.

Performance

For over a thousand years, performers in Vietnamese Water Puppet Theater’s feet have always suffered in cold and wet condition. Water puppetry is performed in a chest-deep pool of water, with the water's surface as a stage. The puppeteers stand behind a screen and control the puppets using long bamboo rods and string mechanism hidden beneath the water surface.

The puppet is carved out of wood and often weighs up to 15 kg. A large rod supports the puppet under the water and is used by the puppeteers to control them. The appearance is of the puppets moving over the water. The puppets enter from either side of the stage, or emerge from the murky depths of the water. In the past when the rice fields were flooded the villagers would entertain each other using this puppet form.

A traditional Vietnamese orchestra provides background music accompaniment. Singers of Cheo (a form of opera) with origin in North Vietnam sing the songs which tell the story being acted out by the puppets. Performances of up to 18 short scenes are usually introduced by a pig-tailed bumpkin known as Teu, and accompanied by a small folk orchestra. The musicians and the puppets interact during performance; the musicians may yell a word of warning to a puppet in danger or a word of encouragement to a puppet in need.

Along with singing the atmosphere, while the decorations set the stage for each particula, traditional musical instruments like drums, wooden bells, cymbals, horns, two-string Chinese violins and flutes create r style of water puppetry. Researcher Nguyen Huy Hong believes that water puppetry combines sculpture, architecture, painting, music, stage and literature.

Content

The theme of the skits is rural and has a strong reference to Vietnamese folklore. It tells of day-to-day living in rural Vietnam and Vietnamese folk tales that are told older generation to younger generation. Of which stories of the harvest, of fishing and of festivals are highlighted.

The water also provides the best setting for the puppeteers' theme: day-to-day village life. Water puppets bring wry humor to scenes of farming, fishing, festival events such as buffalo fights, and children's games of marbles and coin-toss. Fishing turns into a game of wits between the fisherman and his prey, with the fisherman getting the short end (often capturing his surprised neighbor by mistake). Besides village life, scenes include legends and national history. Lion dogs romp like puppies while dragons exhale smoke and shoot sprays of water at the audience. Teu, a pig-tailed bumpkin, is the character who usually plays the role of introducing the performances. The introduction is always accompanied by a small folk orchestra. Spotlights and colorful flags adorn the stage and create a festive atmosphere.

Legends and national history are also told through short skits. Many of the skits, especially those involving the tales of day-to-day living, often have a humorous twist.

Water puppetry has always gone hand in hand with festivals. Each Lunar March 13, Bo Duong villagers hold village festival to commemorate their tutelary god. Aside from worship, the festival is also an opportunity for villagers to relax by watching water puppetry, taking in fireworks displays, flying kites and entering cock-fighting contests. The festival always attracts thousands of attendants. Village festivals are great wind down for farmers and artists alike.

Vietnamese Ethnic Groups

Vietnam is a multi-nationality country. It has 54 ethnic groups with about 86 million people. The Viet (Kinh) people account for 88% of the country's population and mainly inhabit the Red River delta, the central coastal delta, the Mekong delta and major cities. The other 53 ethnic minority groups, totaling over 8 million people, are scattered over mountain areas (covering two-thirds of the country's territory) spreading from the North to the South.

Among ethnic minorities, the most populated are Tay, Thai, Muong, Hoa, Khmer, Nung... with a population of around 1 million each, while the least populated are Brau, Ro Mam, O Du with several hundred people each.

The material and spiritual life differs among the ethnic groups. However, in the history of national development, the ethnic groups in Vietnam have always had a tradition of solidarity and mutual assistance, particularly in the struggle against foreign aggressors. The Government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in the past and that of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at present have constantly developed concrete policies and granted special privileges to help the various highlands ethnic groups keep pace with those on the lowlands, and have simultaneously assisted the development and preservation of the traditional cultural characteristics of each group. To date, different programs are being successfully carried out such as programs to bring iodized salt to remote villages, build a dispensary for each village, control malaria, construct free tuition boarding schools for children from ethnic minorities, end the nomadic life and farming, and study the written language and traditional culture of each group.

The Viet people succeeded in establishing a centralized monarchy back in the 10th century. The Cham people once boasted a flourishing culture early our history. The Tay, Nung, and Khmer peoples had reached high levels of development with the presence of various social strata. The Muong, H'Mong, Dao, Thai peoples... gathered under the rule of local tribal heads. Many ethnic groups divided their population into social echelons, especially those who lived in mountainous areas.

A number of ethnic minorities had mastered some farming techniques. They grew rice plants in swamped paddy fields and carried out irrigation. Others went hunting, fishing, collecting and lived a semi-nomadic life. Each group has its own culture, diverse and special. Beliefs and religions of the Vietnamese ethnic minority groups were also disparate from each other.

However, a fundamental solidarity among ethnic groups has been established on top of these differences as a result of a centuries long cooperation on the soil of Vietnam. Back in the first century of our history, a mutual supplement in economic relationship between lowland people and mountainous people was formed. This solidarity had been unceasingly strengthened during wars of resistance for defending the country. Through the shared struggle for defending and building the country and the mutual assistance for co-existence and development, a common community between the Viet people and other ethnic minority peoples has been established and continuously consolidated and developed.



Based on their languages, the ethnologists have divided the Vietnamese nation into eight groups as follows:

1. Mon - Khmer (Ba Na, Brau, Bru Van Kieu, Cho Ro, Co, Co Ho, Co Tu, Gie Trieng, Hre, Khang, Khmer, Kho Mu, Ma, Mang, M'nong, O Du, Ro Mam, Ta Oi, Xinh Mun, Xo Dang, and Xtieng)

Bana
Kho Mu

2. Tay - Thai (Bo Y, Giay, Lao, Lu, Nung, San Chay, Tay, and Thai)

Tay
Thai
Nung

3. Tibeto - Burman (Cong, Ha Nhi, La Hu, Lo Lo, Phu La, and Si La)

Ha Nhi

4. Malayo - Polynesian (Cham, Chu Ru, E De, Gia Rai, and Ra Glai)

Cham
Ede

5. Viet - Muong (Chut, Kinh, Muong, and Tho)

Muong
Kinh

6. Kadai (Co Lao, La Chi, La Ha, and Pu Peo)

La chi

7. Mong - Dao (Dao, H'Mong, and Pa Then)

Dao
H'Mong

8. Han (Hoa, Ngai, and San Diu)

Ngai
San Diu

(The above information was given by www.voyagevietnam.net)


Miss Vietnam Ethnics was first held in December 2007 in Da Lat. Miss Award belonged to Miss Tay from Thai Nguyen. These some photos of contestants from many ethnic groups:


















The Vietnam Museum of Ethnology (Bảo tàng Dân tộc học Việt Nam) is a museum in Hanoi, Vietnam, which focuses on the 54 officially recognized ethnic groups in Vietnam.It is widely considered to be the finest modern museum in Vietnam and a tourist attraction in Hanoi.
Address: Nguyen Van Huyen Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
Website: http://www.vme.org.vn/

Vietnamese Beliefs and Religions

Viet Nam is a country of many religions and beliefs. The Vietnamese people have a time-honored tradition of practicing their beliefs. Different ethnic groups in Viet Nam have different beliefs linked to their own material and spiritual lives.

1. Traditional beliefs:

- Prosperous Beliefs (Tín ngưỡng phồn thực): In the past, in order to maintain and develop the life, Vietnamese people had to rely on the agriculture (rice planting), the people were born and grown up. Prosperous beliefs are manifested by two ways: the cult of male and female sex organs and the cult of copulating act. It is different from India, which only worships the male sex organ.

You can many statues in My Son Sanctuary which show the cult of male and female sex organs or there is a festival which is on 6th January in Dong Ky (Bac Ninh), people procession male and female sex organs then burn them and give cinders to people in the village for the luck.


The cult of copulating act is shown in kettledrum which was found in Dao Thinh Village- Yen Bai Province.
The cult of copulating act:



- Worship of Nature (Tín ngưỡng sùng bái tự nhiên): Vietnamese worshiped a large number of gods, especially those related to agriculture such as the sun, the moon, land, mountain, river and forest, etc... for good luck. Vietnamese often worshiped 4 deities: Cloud- Rain- Thunder- Lightning. Besides, Vietnamese also worshiped many kinds of animals such as toad, buffalo, snake, crocodile… but the most common is Fairy Dragon (Rồng Tiên).


- Worship of People (Tín ngưỡng sùng bái con người)
Vietnamese practices the cult of ancestors which some persons would ascribe to Chinese cultural influences. In fact, the cult of ancestors has existed for a long time among the inhabitants of Vietnam. Chinese cultural influence has only given more emphasis to it. The cult of ancestors has been called “Đạo ông bà”, as a religion in Vietnam.


A communal house (Thành Hoàng) exists in every village of Northern and Central Vietnam. The community house is the place where the villagers gather to discuss their own problems and where the village genie is worshiped.


Hồn (Spirit) and Vía: Vietnamese has believed that a person has 2 parts: body and spirit. Vía is considered as a intermediary part between body and spirit. Vietnamese man has 3 hồn and 7 vía while a woman has 3 hồn and 9 vía. 7 vía are 2 ears, 2 eyes, 2 nostrils and the mouth but a woman has more two vía- 2 nipples.

Four Immortal Deities (Tứ Bất Tử): Tan Vien represents for the resistance of calamity and flood, Thanh Giong- the resistance of foreign invaders, Chu Dong Tu- the prosperity of things and Lieu Hanh- the prosperity of morality.

2. Vietnamese Religions: Viet Nam has a diverse mix of major religions with a large number of followers, religious figures, and monks such as Buddhism, Christianity and Muslim and some indigenous religions such as Caodaism and Hoa Hao…

- Buddhism: There are two sects of Buddhism: Mahayana and Theravada (Hinayana). Mahayana Buddhism was introduced in Viet Nam in the 2nd century B.C, and Theravada was introduced in Viet Nam in the 2nd century A.D. After the 10th century, Buddhism developed very quickly in Viet Nam and became the national religion under the Ly-Tran dynasty.


- Catholicism: Catholicism was introduced in Viet Nam in the 15th century by European missionaries. Catholicism was first popular in coastal provinces such as Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa and Nghe An, etc., then spread throughout the Red River delta and cities.


- Protestantism: Protestantism was introduced in Viet Nam in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, it was not until 1920 that Protestantism became popular all over the country. At present, there are one million Protestants and 500 Protestant churches in Viet Nam.

- Muslim: Muslim religion was introduced in Viet Nam by the Cham people in the 10th and 11th centuries.

- Caodaism (Đạo Cao Đài): Caodaism is an indigenous religion created in Tay Ninh province in 1926. Caodaism worships three Supreme Beings namely Buddha, Jesus Christ and Cao Dai God. The centre of Caodaism is Tay Ninh province.


- Hoa Hao (Đạo Hòa Hảo): Hoa Hao, also called Hoa Hao Buddhism, is another indigenous religion created in 1939 in Hoa Hao Village, Tan Chau District, An Giang Province.





References:
1. Book: Such is Vietnam, National Political Publishing House
2. Sites: www.wikipedia.com, www. vietnamembassy-cambodia.com

Vietnamese Stage Music

Vietnam Stage Music belongs to Vietnamese Traditional Music. It is now kept and being shown in theater in many special events. These are the most common ones:

1. Hát chèo: China has Peking opera, Japan has Nogaku and Vietnam has Chèo. Hát chèo is a form of generally satirical musical theatre, often encompassing dance, traditionally performed by Vietnamese peasants in northern Vietnam. It is usually performed outdoors by semi-amateur touring groups, stereotypically in a village square or the courtyard of a public building, although it is today increasingly also performed indoors and by professional performers.

An excerpt of Quan Am Thi Kinh- Bad news for the monk

(Quan am Thi Kinh tells a story of a girl, named Thi Kinh, who gets married with a rich man Thien Sy. When her husband is sleeping, she sees a mole on his face, she takes scissors and intends to trim his hair. He suddenly wakes up and thinks that she is trying to murder him. Therefore, his mother and his family put her out of the house. Lonely, she dresses as a man and goes to live in Buddhist Pagoda where she works and prays. She is named Kinh Tam. In the village, there is another girl Thi Mau who falls in love with Kinh Tam but her love is not accepted. Crazily, she has relation with a man in the same village and gets pregnant. Kinh Tam is accused of the father of the baby and she is maltreated strongly. When the baby is born, Thi Mau gives the baby back to the pagoda. Kinh Tam compassionates the baby and goes everywhere to look for milk feeding the baby. She dies 3 years later. After all, people recognize that Kinh Tam is a woman... She is called as the Bo Tat Kinh Tam- Guanyin)

2. Tuồng: It is believed that tuồng was imported from China around the 13th century when Vietnam was warring against against the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. A famous actor named Lý Nguyên Cát was imprisoned by the Vietnamese. The imperial court asked him to spread his knowledge of Chinese theatre to the children of the elite, thus explaining how tuồng had first had its beginnings in Vietnam in the royal court. Later on, it was adapted to travelling troupes who entertained commoners and peasants. Along with Hát chèo, tuồng was one of the other highly popular art forms for commoners.



3. Cải lương: can be roughly translated as "reformed theater" or "renovated theater" in English, is a form of modern folk opera in Vietnam. It blends southern Vietnamese folk songs, classical music, hát tuồng (a classical theatre form based on Chinese opera), and modern spoken drama.It originated in Southern Vietnam in the early 20th century, and blossomed in the 1930s as a theatre of the middle class during the country's French colonial period. Cải lương is now promoted as a national theatrical form. Unlike the other folk forms, it continued to prove popular with the masses as late as the 1970s and the 1980s, although it is now in decline.



4. Bài chòi: is both traditional music and game in Central Vietnam. It is often held in Vietnamese New Year Day (Tết Nguyên Đán). It consists a group of people playing the game.



5. Vọng cổ: is a Vietnamese song and musical structure used primarily in the cải lương theater music and nhạc tài tử chamber music of southern Vietnam. It was composed sometime between 1917 and 1919 by a Mr. Cao Văn Lầu (also called Sáu Lầu or Sáu Làu), of Bạc Liêu, a province in southern Vietnam (Trainor 1975). The song achieved great popularity and eventually its structure became the basis for numerous other songs. The tune is essentially melancholy in character and is sung using Vietnamese modal inflections

The Ao Dai (Long Dress) - The elegant attraction of Vietnamese women

The beauty of women dressed in “Ao Dai”always leaves a deep impression on foreign visitors to Vietnam. Girl students dressed in white long robes take to streets on the way to schools or back home, or gracefully sail on their bikes along streets. Female secretaries in delicate pastels greet you at an office door and older ladies in deep shades of purple, green or blue cut a striking pose at a restaurant dinner. The “Ao Dai” appears to flatter every figure.

Female students in Vietnam wear Ao Dai on every special occasions

Early versions of the “Ao Dai”date back to 1744 when Lord Vu Vuong of the Nguyen Dynasty decreed both men and women should wear an ensemble of trousers and a gown that buttoned down the front. However, not until 1930 did “Ao Dai”appear partly similar to its look today. Now, Men wore it less, generally only on ceremonial occasions such as weddings or funerals. During the 1950s two tailors in Saigon started producing “Ao Dai”with raglan sleeves. This creates a diagonal seam running from the collar to the underarm and this style is still preferred today

Miss Universe Vietnam 2008 - Nguyen Thuy Lam and the Ao dai in Miss Universe 2008

“Ao Dai”is made individually to fit each customer's shape to create the most graceful look. Its body-hugging top flows over wide trousers that brush the floor. The pants should reach the soles of the feet and flow along the floor. Splits in the gown extend well above waist height and make it comfortable and easy to move in.Vietnamese people adore Ao Dai so much. With Ao Dai, every Vietnamese women can show their beauty, attraction and charm.

Comfortability is always taken into account for fashions and beauty. Tailoring must ensure the wearer's freedom of movements. Despite it is a long robe, “Ao Dai”must be cool to wear. Synthetic or silk fabrics are preferred as they do not crush and are quick drying, making the “Ao Dai”a practical uniform for daily wear.

The color is indicative of the wearer's age and status. Young girls wear pure white, fully-lined outfits symbolizing their purity. Older but unmarried girls move into soft pastel shades. Only married women wear “Ao Dai”in strong, rich colors, usually over white or black pants. However, “Ao Dai”is rarely seen in places where manual work is practiced. The nineties saw a real resurgence of ao dai. It has become standard and common attire for girl students as well as female staff at offices and hotels. Traditionally, “Ao Dai”has become the most preferred dress on formal occasions.Ao Dai appears frequently in songs, poems, paitings or novels

Today, “Ao Dai”has been a bit modified. Its length is cut shorter usually just below the knee. Variations in the neck, between boat and mandarin style, are common. And even adventurous alterations such as a low scooped neckline, puffed sleeves or off the shoulder designs are appearing as ladies experiment with fashion. Color patterns are no longer rigidly controlled and accesses to new fabrics have generated some dazzling results. However, most visitors to Vietnam have highly appreciated local tailors' skills when making ao dai. It is hard to think of a more elegant, demure and charming outfit, that suits Vietnamese women of different ages, than ao dai.