Water puppets from Vietnam

MIT International Puppet Museum of Catalonia

3 years ago

MIT Museu Internacional del Titella a Catalunya

Water puppets from Vietnam

Vietnamese water puppets are a traditional form of theater and entertainment that has been practiced for centuries in Vietnam.

These wood-carved puppets, just like traditional puppets, are made to tell deep stories through the use of movement and voice.

What sets Vietnamese water puppets apart are the strings that control their movements. These ropes are dipped directly into the water to provide a gentle balance between light and shadow, as well as a contrast between black and white.

The main themes presented by Vietnamese water puppets are varied and include everything from mythological stories to folk tales, local legends and even classical poetry.

The main purpose is to convey educational messages to the audience about morality, human kindness, mutual respect and other important moral virtues. The actors use singing and melodious voices to narrate their stories with great emotion, making the theater truly memorable for everyone present.

In Vietnam, many families have made the art of water puppet theater their way of life for generations.

This unique form of artistic expression has become an integral part of Vietnamese national culture, where almost everyone is familiar with this particular type of stage performance from young children to the elderly.

Many museums dedicate permanent exhibitions to this popular and historical art so significant for the Asian country.

They can be classified into different categories:

1. Traditional Vietnamese Water Puppets: This category refers to puppets made by hand using natural materials such as bamboo, wood and straw, usually representing traditional Vietnamese mythological figures.

2. Modern water puppets from Vietnam: This category is based on the tradition of water puppet theater but uses modern materials such as plastic or metal to create contemporary and fun characters.

3. Floating figures: These are miniatures modeled as animals and characters that float on water to recreate funny or historical scenes.

4. Water puppets: These are marionettes controlled by an artist from under water to tell stories, represent different actions or simply entertain the public.

If you want to see a performance you'll have to go to Hanoi, here's the link in case you ever get excited: Than Glong Water Puppet Theatre.

You can enjoy a display of original puppets in the museum, they are part of ours Collection