Rustic, unique puppet puppetry of the Tay

Not as popular as water puppetry, but puppetry still has a special attraction in the festival of the Tay.

The most famous are the shallow puppet show in Tham Ro hamlet, Binh Yen commune and Ru Nghe village, Dong Thinh commune, Dinh Hoa district, Thai Nguyen. This is the unique culture of the Tay ethnic people have more than two hundred years ago and survive to this day. "Puppet" rustic ... Puppetry dance is a unique art of Tay ethnic culture in particular and the cultural community of ethnic minorities in Vietnam in general. Deformation is usually performed by the Tay in the beginning of the year, during the festival (the ceremony down the field), in order to bring joy to the public, along with expressing the desire to look forward to rain, wind Good wishes, the wish to pass the golden plaque of the people in the village. The uniqueness of the puppetry technique comes from the way puppets are made. Puppets are usually made of squared wood, a common wood species in mountainous areas, and are easy to maneuver without the termite. The puppets mainly imitate the image of the king, shallow, animal. To create a medium-sized puppet, artisans need to spend two to three days, going through stages such as material selection, manual shaping (this is a step that requires ingenuity, sophistication and spend most time), drying, painting and sewing clothes for the character. A set of tangled to play usually has 13 children, including two heads of the largest size and made of wood jackfruit. Today, with the advent of traditional folk games, many artisans in Tham Rer and Ru Nghe have created more new puppets in their own style. Puppetry puppetry of the Tay is also called puppetry because most puppets are controlled by bamboo rods attached to the body, head, hands and feet of the character, for convenience and control. Recently, artisans have replaced the iron or aluminum bars. The puppet rod was very simple, consisting of a stretch of the stage, a set of about 13 puppets, a flute, a flute and some spears. All blends create a unique play, attractive viewers. ... and profound human values A traditional Tram puppet show consists of 8 games, such as puppet, tangle, tangle, gecko ..., lasting half a session, in the order of "pre-guzzler". Opening the show, the two will be out in front of the "guava" room to introduce puppet and stabilize the order, followed by the performances with the puppet controller in the game, the music player instruments, beat, bar ... and the reader of the spear. While the male role takes control of the puppet, the female in the village will raise the voice and read the dialogue for the character. Sometimes people have to play three or four at a time. The word of mouth is usually rhyming, interactive, dialogue with the viewer, leading the performance of the puppet and expressing the wish of the human person. The rough, rustic logs through the hands of the carving and manipulation of the artists have become incredibly flexible and lively. In the puppet show, the puppets are driven by bamboo sticks, combined with phonics, flute and singing to create a unique play, attracting viewers. The most characteristic feature of the Tay puppet show is also the closing stage of the festival's concerts, a game of climbing the gecko. The manipulation of puppeteers manipulates powerful moves between humans and gecko such as climbing, falling down, running, jumping, scratching, lacing, vividly liven up, giving viewers the sound. laghing out loud. Gecko has the ability to weather forecasts very accurately. The gecko climbing stall with the belief that humans can also anticipate the evolution of the weather, adjust production, and pray for a bountiful crop. Through the stories handed down, besides valuable folk art, puppet Tay in Dinh Hoa also carry the concept of spiritual mystery. Before each puppet carrying out the game, the puppet chief must do the ceremony to burn incense puppets, as well as "Ghost puppet". Because people here conception, puppet like the gods, ghosts ... Also so that people in the tangle when lost often have the custom to bring the puppet buried. It is not only a kind of folk art with bold characteristics of Tay ethnic culture, puppetry also has a deep meaning of education and humanity. Through this kind of performance, the performers convey the message of love for labor, praising the workers who care for the production, denigrating the lazy, advising the people to keep the moral "drink water remember the source. ", Unite in the production and daily life, cherish the farmer, build the countryside prosperous, happy family, warm, social development.