Wendy has visited Hanoi, Vietnam for two consecutive years, and each time he will always arrange a visit to the water puppet theater. This shows that the classic status of the water puppet show can be said to be the most representative traditional opera culture in Vietnam.Come back to the Thang Long Theater next to Hoan Kiem Lake. The location of the theater is quite convenient. It is close to the XNUMXth Ancient Street, Hoan Kiem Lake and other major tourist attractions in Hanoi. Before and after the performance, you can visit the nearby attractions and have a cup of coffee. Enjoy the unique Vietnamese style.
Transportation: How to get to Thang Long Water Puppet Theater
The Thang Long Water Puppet Theater is located in the northeast corner of Hoan Kiem Lake in Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi, next to the XNUMXth Ancient Street area, retaining the traditional flavor of the ancient city of Hanoi. There are bus routes on both east and west sides of the XNUMXth Ancient Street. The street area can be walked mainly, and there are also electric tour buses and rickshaws. It is most convenient to take a taxi to the theater. However, the road around the lake in Hoan Kiem Lake is closed to become a large square on weekends and holidays. At this time, it is still necessary to walk to it.
Hoan Kiem Lake is a landmark tourist attraction in Hanoi. The XNUMX Ancient Street to the north of the lake is a backpacker base. There are many youth hostels, cafes and tourist service offices. The Hanoi Night Market is also located in this area. The Thang Long Water Puppet Theater It is a cheap theater located here; to the north of the lake is a gathering place for star hotels, schools and public education institutions. The famous attractions are the Hanoi Opera House, Huolu Prison and many museum facilities.
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▲ The Thang Long Theatre is located at the northeast corner of Hoan Kiem Lake, next to the XNUMXth Ancient Street, with an excellent location.
▲ On weekends and holidays, the road around Hoan Kiem Lake will be closed and become a public activity square.
▲ The Thang Long Water Puppet Theater faces Hoan Kiem Lake, next to the large-scale Civet Coffee cafe.
Archives of Thang Long Water Puppet Theater
Thanglong Water Puppet Theatre was established in October 1969, invested by the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee and the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau. The theatre provides 10 seats and aims to carry forward Vietnam’s thousand-year-old tradition of water puppet theatre. , The art group cultivated by the theater also toured more than 300 countries around the world, becoming a must-see performance for foreign tourists when they come to Hanoi for sightseeing.
Thang Long Theatre provides 365-day performances all year round. Usually there are four performances a day in summer and six performances a day in winter. Actually, please check the official website. On Sundays, private performances can be provided on demand.The fare for adults is 100,000 VND per person, and the fare for children under 1.2 meters is VND 60,000 per person. If you are worried about encountering a tourist group, you can buy tickets at the entrance counter in advance.
Thang Long Theatre is the first choice for enjoying water puppet shows in Hanoi. There is also a Lotus Water Puppet Theater on the west side of Hoan Kiem Lake, which is relatively low in popularity and performance.In addition, the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, located near West Lake in Hanoi, has an open-air water puppet show, and the performance space is more open. It is also worthwhile to visit the museum when visiting the museum.
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▲ There is a huge puppet decoration outside the theater, and the ticket office is on the right of the gate.
▲ At that time, there were five performances a day, and the adult fare was 100,000 VND, about NT$130.
▲ The Thang Long Theatre was funded and established by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports and is an official institution.
Water puppet show appreciation experience
Puppetry originated from the Li Dynasty (10th-13th centuries AD) in Vietnam and has a history of one thousand years of development. According to the original historical records, the puppetry was originally a performance to celebrate the birth of the king, and it has become an event combined with folk festivals.Vietnamese folk puppet shows are divided into land puppetry and water puppetry. Land puppetry is rarely performed on stage. Water puppetry requires specific stage facilities and becomes a festival performance.
The water puppet show stage is built on the pool. The performers use bamboo poles and long lines to manipulate the puppets in the background. They often use water spray, firecrackers, and smoke to create special effects. There will be an accompaniment orchestra next to them, using drums, flutes, zithers, violin and other musical instruments. Performance, like opera, puppet show, Taiwanese opera and other performances, the content of the performance is usually national hero deeds, folk tales, common people's life and entertainment, etc.
The entire performance is in Vietnamese, and most people definitely don’t understand it, but you can get the program list in the lobby before entering the venue, and you can roughly understand the content of the performance. In fact, enjoying the lively puppets is worth the price. The performers are in the background. The lower body is completely immersed in water, although wearing waterproof equipment, it is also quite hard.After the performance, you can look at the puppet souvenirs in the admission hall. If you are interested, you can buy it home as a souvenir.
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▲ You can get a brief introduction of the program in the lobby on the second floor before entering the venue, which makes it easier to understand the content of the performance.
▲ Before the performance begins, the accompaniment orchestra on the left begins to play.
▲ During puppet performances, special effects such as water spray, smoke and firecrackers are often interspersed.
▲ After the performance, the performers behind the scenes appeared to thank the audience.
▲ The performers wore waterproof equipment for the lower part of the body and were immersed in water, which was very hard work.
▲ The performance hall of Thang Long Theatre provides 130 seats.
▲ In the lobby on the second floor, souvenirs are sold.
▲ On weekends and holidays, Hoan Kiem Lake has become a large event square, and several young people are kicking shuttlecocks in a circle.
▲ Visitors can take a rickshaw to tour the XNUMXth Ancient Street.
▲ After watching the performance, you can visit Hoan Kiem Lake, XNUMX Ancient Street and other scenic spots along the way.
◎ Thang Long Water Puppet Theater. Thang Long Water Puppets Theatre
– Address: 57b Đinh Tiên Hoàng, Hàng Bạc, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
– Phone: +84 24 3936 4335
– Official website: http://thanglongwaterpuppet.org/
