First Vietnamese opera to be revived

Vietnam’s first opera, named Co Sao, or 'Ms. Sao', by late composer Do Nhuan will be revived by the Vietnam Opera Ballet Theater on November 24 and 25 on the occasion of his 90th birthday.

A scene in "Co Sao’ by director Huyen Nga in her graduation thesis in March.

The opera, which was first introduced in 1965, told the life story of a woman named Sao from Thai ethnic minority group in northern Son La Province during the war against the French in the 1940s and 1950s.  ‘Co Sao’ reflected revolutionary struggle of people in the northern mountainous areas at the time. It was said to be a big success and paved the way for further well-known works such as ‘On the Krongpa Bank’, ‘Lotus flower’ and “The Sculptor”.

This time the presentation of Co Sao will take the form of a new version by composer Do Hong Quan, Do Nhuan’s son and now chairman of the Vietnam Musicians Association. The event is widely considered a significant cultural event, not only for its historical value, but also because it is among the few Vietnamese operas still being showcased on local stages.

A second wind for Vietnamese opera

Quan said that he hopes the presentation will inspire more productions of famous Vietnamese operas and encourage composers to create new works.

“The idea came from the Vietnam Musicians Association, to which Do Nhuan was former general secretary, and we got support from the National Symphony Orchestra, and the National Opera & Ballet Theater, who will cooperate in our production of ‘Co Sao’,” he revealed. “The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam have also encouraged us to do this.”

After being revived in 1976, this will be the third time “Co Sao” is staged and Quan reveals that they have been facing great challenges in reviving it this time.

“We've been thinking about this project for two or three years,” he said. “But as the scores were lost, it took us nearly a year to copy it from an old penciled handwritten copy which my family still preserves.”

We are very hopeful for a successful production, especially with the participation of Japanese conductor Honna Tetsuji, and traditional Thai music and dance.

This time Co Sao will be directed by Huyen Nga, who recently graduated from the Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema, majoring in Theatre Direction.

“Since 1997 I’ve been singing at the National Opera & Ballet Theater and have acted in many operas including Orphee et Eurydice, the Magic Bullet, and Cosi fan tutte,” Nga revealed. “And this is my first attempt at directing. However, I have a special love for ‘Co Sao’ and that’s why I chose it for my graduation thesis in March. I'm very happy to have another chance at it now on a much larger stage."

Co Sao will begin at 8 p.m. on November 24 & 25 at Hanoi Opera House, 1 Trang Tien Street. Tickets cost from VND200,000 to VND500,000.