Hat Boi is one of three national intangible cultural heritages of Binh Dinh province, known as the cradle of ancient Tuong singing art.
Binh Dinh is considered the “cradle” of the art of tuong (hat boi). The history of tuong art in the province is closely associated with the names of the founder Dao Duy Tu and the successor Dao Tan – who contributed to perfecting and elevating this art form. Binh Dinh is where Dao Duy Tu first stopped, and is also the place that nurtured the typical names later such as Dao Tan, Nguyen Hien Dinh, Nguyen Van Dieu…
Among them, the famous Dao Tan (1845-1907) is one of the great names with famous plays such as Ho Sanh Dan, Co Thanh, Tram Huong Cac...
He was a poet, playwright, and leading artist of Vietnam in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, contributing to bringing this art form to its peak and surviving to this day. According to many studies, the peak of the development of hát bội was during the time of Tự Đức (1848-1883).
The typical feature of this art form in Binh Dinh is that the singing, dancing and acting in the martial arts opera must demonstrate strong martial arts qualities and full of vitality. If you sing well but dance badly, you cannot become a true Tuong artist. To dance well, you must learn martial arts, regardless of gender, so the artists of the Tuong troupe in the past were either martial artists or martial arts students.
The art of hát bội permeates every village in Bình Định through ritual singing sessions, also known as hát thứ Lễ, organized by local dignitaries or the rich who have been promoted or have built big houses… to show their gratitude. The homeowner who wants to sing thứ Lễ must choose a date and time to set up a stage, hold a ceremony to sing, and have a pair of parallel sentences in front of the stage. The stage is usually set up in fields, gardens, in front of communal houses, pagodas or temples… where there is a spacious area for people to watch.
The special point to recognize and distinguish the art of hát bội from other arts is that the costumes, jewelry and makeup of the artists are extremely elaborate. The way of applying makeup and painting on the face, from shape to color, to costumes, gestures and movements are all clearly defined. The audience only needs to look at the character to know which role the actor is playing.
The art of mask makeup in opera inherently depicts the characters' appearances in a symbolic form. Artists must learn to know how to apply makeup and paint masks for themselves according to each role and type of character.
The red base color of the face represents a loyal and upright hero. The white base color represents a treacherous and flattering person. The black base color represents a straightforward, straightforward, hot-tempered but honest and truthful person. The pale gray base color represents an old person; the blue base color represents a scheming, cunning, and evil person.
Eyebrows are also a way to identify special characters in opera. In which, white represents fairies, the elderly, soft and simple eyebrows represent kind people. With curved, dancing eyebrows, they represent proud, arrogant people, straight or red-rimmed eyebrows represent hot-tempered people. Short colored eyebrows represent cunning, flattering people.
In the photo is People's Artist Dinh Truong in the role of Commander Nguyen Thien in the play "Hammock bearer“. The play is about the character Le Dai Cang (1771-1847), an upright mandarin and an outstanding personality from Phuoc Hiep, Tuy Phuoc. Through that, it introduces and arouses the pride of Binh Dinh people in the famous scholar of their homeland.
People's Artist Minh Ngoc (in red shirt) plays the role of mandarin Le Dai Cang. In the sixth act of the play, Nguyen Thien uses dirty tricks to demote Le Dai Cang to a hammock-carrying soldier. The images of black hammocks blend with other colors, depicting the darkness of Nguyen Dynasty society, a society full of black and white ambiguity, lacking transparency.
Body language is an important part of expressing character actions and personality. Each character’s face is made up separately to distinguish their personality. Costumes for Tuong characters include: armor, tunic, peach-colored dress, belt, etc. Props are usually swords, knives, spears, flags, fans, horsewhips, dusters, etc.
“Bau Dong plays Ly Phung Dinh – Even if my husband beats me, I will still go” is a familiar folk song of Binh Dinh people about their passion for this art form. Nowadays, people can watch performances at hat an in fishing villages during the fish praying ceremony or Via Ba ceremony in Nhon Phong commune, Nuoc Man festival in Phuoc Quang, Tuy Phuoc…
For tourists coming to Quy Nhon, they can listen to hát bội and many other typical arts of the province at the art walking street.
Source: vnexpress.net
