Pupils Pleased by Peculiar Puppets

“I liked the dragons,” said John Tran, 3rd grade.

“I liked the dragons too because they spit fire,” added Kevin Thai, 5th grade.

Both students of the APU International Elementary School commented after watching a show at the Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theatre recently.

On December 10, Tran and Thai joined the rest of their schoolmates on a field trip to see the water puppets perform in the theater, located on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St. in District 1.

The water puppets themselves made the show unique. Whereas there are many different types of puppets originating in the West, water puppets originate from the northern part of Vietnam. Since they are made of wood, the water puppets can weigh more than 30 lbs.

During the show, puppeteers stood behind the setting and used long bamboo rods with string mechanisms, hidden underwater, to control the puppets.  The surface of a pool was used as the stage.

Accompanying the performance was a traditional Vietnamese orchestra. People within the orchestra interacted with the puppets from time to time and told stories through song.

“I think they put a lot of hard work into their performance,” said Darry Nguyen, another 5th grader from APU’s elementary school campus on Lac Long Quan St. in District 11.

Before returning to school, students were given the opportunity to eat lunch at a local Lotteria. A good time was had by all.