Running out of good actors for the stage

The 2023 "Moc Quan - Nguyen Trong Quyen" Cai Luong Competition is taking place in Can Tho City. This competition is a playground for provinces in the Mekong Delta region, however, in this year's competition there are only 43 contestants from Cai Luong art troupes in the provinces of Ben Tre, Long An, Kien Giang, Tra Vinh , Hau Giang...

Exhausted candidates, sticking to "favorite songs"

Many competitions such as "National Drama Actor Talent 2023", "National Cai Luong Actor Talent 2023", "Golden Rice Flower", "Golden Bell of Traditional Opera"... are organized and the number of contestants competing in these competitions is a difficult problem for the organizers.

Insiders said that some competitions have few contestants because the competitions are held far away, which is not really convenient for artists in Ho Chi Minh City to compete. Art activities in Ho Chi Minh City are mainly socialized stages, living from ticket sales. Due to limited funds, it is very difficult to pack up and go to competitions. "In the past, we have condemned too many beauty and beauty pageants, and the same is true for the stage. Competitions are still held densely, awards are still given, but tickets are not sold on the stage, and recognized talented actors have no place to show their talents" - manager Huynh Anh Tuan (IDECAF Drama Theater) worried.

Meritorious Artist Ca Le Hong also confided: "Too many competitions are organized but the results are not high, because many contestants after winning prizes do not have enough strength to perform. The precious capital from human resources cannot last forever."

Artist Kieu My Dung ( Can Tho City Theater Association) also acknowledged: "Many contestants only know how to sing "3 Southern songs, 6 Northern songs and a vọng cổ song". To become a talented actor, one cannot only have those "signature songs". This has led to the consequence that some contestants won the prize but only performed one excerpt, and could not perform any other play."

A performance of the contest "Tran Huu Trang Cai Luong Stage Actor Talent"

It's not easy to become an artist!

In each competition, the theater industry always expects to have many new talents to provide for the art units. Regarding the judging criteria, the art councils always put first the task of finding the factors with good singing and acting ability. Meritorious Artist Ca Le Hong said: "When judging, we focus on the actors' improvisational attitude, to recognize how they were trained or just participated from innate talent. Therefore, it is necessary to distinguish between two awards: promising candidates and candidates capable of winning gold medals".

According to experts, it is undeniable that the coverage of television programs and the flourishing of the stage have created an attraction for the acting industry as well as stimulated the passion of young people. But with the art of singing and acting, quantity cannot be the criterion. To discover talented actors, it is impossible to organize massive competitions and then retrain them. "Doing so will damage stage talent, reduce the value of true art, especially the unique features of each actor" - People's Artist Dinh Bang Phi expressed.

People's Artist Dinh Bang Phi cited the reason why artists who were once considered the golden generation of Cai Luong theater such as: Bach Tuyet, Ngoc Giau, Le Thuy, Phuong Lien, Phuong Quang, Tan Tai, Thanh Thanh Hoa, My Chau... all had their own unique style in singing and acting because they did not compete according to the trend. The Thanh Tam Gold Medal was the first step for them to reach out on their own, plan their own direction and be accepted by the public.

According to People's Artist Ngoc Giau, just winning a gold medal is not yet an artist, just an actor, because he can only perform a few songs, play a few roles, so he cannot mistakenly consider himself an artist. The title of artist is very noble, to reach it, one must practice hard.

According to researchers, because too many competitions are held so frequently, the stage nationwide falls into a situation where people only work to compete, and the stories of failure and success from competitions are endless. And a stage industry that only has actors who compete to have enough awards to consider giving out titles is really dangerous.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/van-nghe/can-kiet-dien-vien-gioi-cho-san-khau-20231107211902488.htm