A weekly Tuong (classical drama) street show will make its comeback to the Da Nang public for free on Sunday, April 4, at a public park located on a section of riverside Tran Hung Dao Street, near the eastern end of the Tran Thi Ly Bridge.

Apart from enjoying impressive Tuong performances by seasoned artistes from the Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, both locals and visitors will be introduced to the arts of Tuong mask drawing and its dress codes.

Also, the audience will enjoy interesting moments whilst having their photos taken in colourful Tuong costumes available for rent at reasonable prices.

That classical drama takes to the street is a new way Da Nang has initiated to make this form of time-honoured stage performing arts more accessible to the public, thus ensuring its revival.

According to an official from the Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, at first, passers-by may stop to watch Tuong performances for just a few minutes out of curiosity, but their interest gradually develops.

The Vietnamese classical drama is said to date back hundreds of years. Along with other traditional performing arts like ‘Cheo’ (traditional opera) in the north and ‘Cai luong’ in the south, Tuong is a vital component of the Vietnamese spirit and character.

Tuong developed from a folk art into a royal art. Its themes include loyalty to the monarch and patriotic duty – which define the play's structure, features, language, music, colour, struggles and the personalities of the characters.

Performances consist of highly stylised singing, dancing and music that are filled with symbolism.

In a similar vein, the evenings of Saturday and Sunday every week will see the bustling ambiance created by a series of other unique cultural and entertainment events taking place on the eastern bank of the ionic Han River.

Notable amongst them are numerous exciting performances on traditional Vietnamese music, folk songs and ‘bai choi’ (singing while acting as playing cards) on a section of Tran Hung Dao Street.

Likewise, a street carnival of live music and dancing will take place on the last Saturday of every month between 8:00pm and 9.30pm along a section of Tran Hung Dao between its intersections with Ly Nam De and Trieu Viet Vuong in Son Tra District.

Reporting by HA THU – Translated by A.T