Artist Anh Tu (left) performs in a play at the Tuoi Tre (Youth) Theatre
According to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, the artist died at 12.15pm after a long period struggling with diabetes.
Born in 1962, Anh Tu was a well-known actor, director and manager at the Tuoi Tre (Youth) Theatre for nearly 20 years before being appointed deputy director of the Vietnam Drama Theatre in 2013. He was promoted director of the theatre in April this year.
The Hanoi-based artist was famous for his determination to develop a series of new projects at the Vietnam National Drama Theatre, including two successful plays Hamlet and Kieu.
Tu was praised for skillfully incorporating modern drama as well as integrating the Xuan Pha folk performance from Thanh Hoa province into Hamlet.
A scene in the Hamlet which was performed in Singapore in 2016. Director Anh Tu introduced the Xuan Pha folk performance from Thanh Hoa province into the play
The play received a positive response from audiences and foreign counterparts at the 2016 International Experiment Theatre Festival, particularly at its tour in Singapore.
In Kieu, which was adapted from the Vietnamese classic literary work entitled Truyen Kieu (The Tale of Kieu) by poet Nguyen Du, director Anh Tu chose the appropriate excerpts while using operetta and improvements in stage design.
In terms of content, he highlighted the new values of The Tale of Kieu such as mentioning the inconsiderable honesty in Tu Ba's (the procurer) heart of hearts.
He was quoted by the Nhan Dan Newspaper in 2016 as saying that the Tale of Kieu is vastly popular in the life of Vietnamese people and also famous internationally, which puts pressure on artists, including him, in creation. And he had tried to overcome the pressure to experiment and innovate and hoped that audiences would warmly welcome the play.
Artist Anh Tu was presented with many awards including Best Director at the 1st National Experimental Theatre Festival in 2008, and Best Director at the 2015 National Professional Drama Competition.