Cai luong artist marks 30 years

Old school: Cai luong artist Kim Tu Long (left) poses with actress Thoai My. Long will celebrate his 30-year career by a live performance in HCM City this week. — VNS File Photo

HCM CITY — Cai luong (reformed theatre) artist Kim Tu Long will mark the 30th anniversary of his career with a live performance in HCM City this week.

Thien Duong Cua Toi (My Paradise) will feature extracts from cai luong plays that helped him achieve fame – including Day Song Bach Dang Giang (Waves in the Bach Dang River), and Nang Tien Mau Don (Peony Fairy).

Long, also the show's director, said it offered him a chance to achieve his dream of "paradise" – or, as he described it, an ideal theatre show where several performances were staged in the best possible conditions and actors work hard.

Long, real name Hoang Kim Long, will be joined by Thoai My, Phuong Hang, Trong Nghia, and Que Tran for the show.

Comedians Hoai Linh and Bao Quoc, and singers Cam Ly and Phi Nhung will be special guests.

Day Song Bach Dang Giang will not be a solo effort. Instead, Long will collaborate with young director Vu Minh, and the play will feature nearly 150 dancers.

Long, born in Sai Gon (now HCM City) in 1966, developed an interest in cai luong at 14. He learned to sing vong co (nostalgic tunes), a traditional southern art form, and perform cai luong from Vuong Quang and the late People's Artist Phung Ha.

In 1985, he was a member of Tran Huu Trang Troupe 3, one of the region's leading cai luong performers. His strong voice and dance skills quickly made an impression on audiences.

In 1992, he won the prestigious Tran Huu Trang Award given to promising cai luong artists.

He also won the Nguoi Lao Dong (The Labourer) newspaper's Mai Vang (Golden Ochna) Award for Favourite Cai Luong Actor in 2002, 2003, and 2009.

Thien Duong Cua Toi will be staged at the Hoa Binh Theatre in HCM City on Friday and Saturday. — VNS

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Veteran cai luong artist dies at 74

Song in his heart: Performer Tan Tai. — VNS File Photo

HCM CITY—Veteran traditional performer Tan Tai, one of the southern region's most talented cai luong artists, passed away at his home from illness on Wednesday in HCM City.

Born in 1938 in An Giang Province's Nui Sap District, Tai, whose real name was Le Tan Tai, was a primary teacher after school, but he loved singing tai tu (a kind of Southern traditional music) when he was a child.

He began his theatre career as a cai luong (reformed opera) performer in 1962. Travelling across the region, Tai worked for leading cai luong troupes, including Buom Vang, Da Ly Huong, Hau Giang and Kim Chung.

After four years of performing professionally, he won the Thanh Tam Prize, the city award for the year's best cai luong artists.

From1962 to 1975 he worked with music producers in Sai Gon, now HCM City, to record more than 1,000 tai tu songs and perform as a leading character in 500 cai luong plays, playing an important role in preserving and developing the art.

In 1964, he opened his own troupe called Thu Do, attracting young performers.

He was honoured with the title "King of cai luong recording" by music producers and fans.

After 1975, he worked for the Hau Giang Cai Luong Troupe then in 1990, he started work as a guest artist for the city's Tran Huu Trang Theatre.

A prolific performer, Tai devoted his life to cai luong, which celebrates the culture and lifestyle of Vietnamese people in the south.

The performer's funeral will be held on Monday at the Nghe Si (Artists) Temple in Go Vap District. — VNS

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