What do you think of when you hear about Vietnam? Surely it just would be the US-Vietnam War. But there is more to just that. There are more than 1,000 years of rich history in Vietnam. Water Puppetry in Vietnam has played a very crucial role in the culture and shaping of Vietnam.
So what exactly is Water Puppetry?
How Does Water Puppetry Work?
You may be wondering, how do the puppeteers control the puppets so fast in the water? These skilled people use thin bamboo sticks to control the puppets and make them as invisible as possible so that the audience thinks that the puppets are actually real. It actually takes decades to fully master the controlling aspect of the puppets, making this job a really hard one!
Water Puppetry is really popular in the northern part of Vietnam, near places like Ha Long Bay and Hanoi. You can go to theatres like the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre in Hanoi like we went to (as you can see in the picture)
Let's go back to the 11th century in northern Vietnam's Red River Delta region, where farmers would plant and irrigate their crops.
During the monsoon season in Vietnam, floods filled the fields of those farmers in the Red River Delta. Water Puppets were a form of entertainment when rice farmers started creating puppets out of materials like wood and performed shows for families living in the region.
During this time, the farmers thought that these water puppet shows would scare the bad/evil spirits away from those areas!
You may be wondering, how do the puppeteers control the puppets so fast in the water? These skilled people use thin bamboo sticks to control the puppets and make them as invisible as possible so that the audience thinks that the puppets are actually real. It actually takes decades to fully master the controlling aspect of the puppets, making this job a really hard one!
What does Water Puppetry Portray?
The show starts with the 1st character, the playful character Tễu, who introduces the performance and leads the audience through the different scenes. What are the scenes, you may ask? The performance goes through the daily lives of the northern Vietnamese villagers like fishing, parades, herding, farming, etc.
The stage is mostly brightly colored with a pool of water in the middle. Behind and in the wings of the stage, the puppeteers control the puppets. There is also a musical ensemble that is on both sides of the stage that really brings the stories to life!
Did you know that some of the scenes of some performances actually are trying to portray a message or moral?
Where to experience Water Puppetry?
Or you can go to the Đào Thục Village in Hanoi, which has authentic water puppetry and has fantastic outside shows, a 300-year-old tradition!
My Experience
Overall, the water puppet performance in the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre was really fun and enjoyable. I really liked the musical ensemble, especially the flute part, even though I could not understand the singers and the dialouges, as they were in traditional Vietnamese Language. I would recommend that if you are not a native here, you should get an audio guide to understand the daily lives of the Northern Vietnamese.
The water puppetry was overall amazing and I really liked it.
Travel Tips
I would recommend buying tickets as early as possible as these are really popular and are open at these times: 3pm, 4:10pm, 5:20pm, 6:30pm and 8pm. We booked our slot at 8pm as we explored the city of Hanoi in the afternoon. The prices are 100,000 - 200,000 VND/ person/ show ($4.3 - 8.6) depending on where you go.
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