Cải lương actress holds show to celebrate 40-year-long career

CẢI LƯƠNG STAR: Veteran actress Ngọc Huyền (left) has worked to preserve cải lương. Photo courtesy of the HCM City Theatre Artists’ Association

HCM CITY — Vietnamese-American theatre actress Ngọc Huyền, a veteran of cải lương (reformed opera), will perform in a mini show in HCM City celebrating her 40-year career.

The show, Hát Với Tình Thân (Singing by My Heart), will feature famous vọng cổ (nostalgia tunes) songs, which are often used in cải lương.

She will sing Mẹ Vẫn Đợi Con Về (Mother is Waiting for You) and Tình Yêu Nghệ Thuật (Love for Vietnamese Music), which are vọng cổ songs by late artists Bạch Mai and Viễn Châu, two of the South’s leading theatre directors and scriptwriters.

The highlight of the concert will be excerpts from cải lương plays that made Huyền famous for more than two decades.

Huyền will perform with cải lương stars Kim Tử Long, Vũ Luân and Bình Tinh, who have played a role in the 100-year-old development of the art form.

“I’ll sing original traditional tunes for cải lương lovers,” said 55-year-old Huyền, who returned to live in HCM City in 2017 after 15 years away from home.

CELEBRATING HUYỀN – Vietnamese-American theatre actress Ngọc Huyền, a veteran of cải lương (reformed opera), will perform in a mini show in HCM City celebrating her 40-year career. Photo courtesy of the artist

Born in HCM City, Huyền began her career at a very early age. During her stage debut for the Thanh Nga Troupe in 1985, she wowed the audience with her voice, looks and performance.

She later joined Huỳnh Long Troupe, one of the region’s leading tuồng (classical drama) troupes, becoming one of its brightest stars.

In 1992, she performed pop songs in cải lương plays and left a very strong impression on young audiences.

She has won dozens of top prizes at national traditional theatre festivals and contests, including the Trần Hữu Trang Award and Mai Vàng (Golden Apricot) Award presented by HCM City Theatre Association and Người Lao Động (Labourer) newspaper.

Her strong and melodic voice as well as commanding stage presence have helped Huyền leave an indelible mark on the art.

Huyền’s show, Hát Với Tình Thân, will begin at 8pm at the Đồng Giao,164 Pasteur Street, District 1, on January 7.— VNS