Don’t you agree?
We guarantee that Lang Toi – My Village show by Lune Production will give you goosebumps, you will laugh, forget to close your mouth and clap a lot.
The journey of Lang Toi – My Village began 10 years ago, in 2009. It is the first bamboo circus of Vietnam, a “Nouveau Cirque du Vietnam”.
What does it mean, “new circus?”. No animals, attention to the aesthetic impact, acrobatics and music, sometimes on character and story development. This show presents a poetic daily village life of Northern Vietnamese. But you can find it in other areas than the north.
There are 2 venues in Hanoi, 1 in Hoi An and 1 in Saigon
(click on the links to dive into our ultimate guides to these cities)
We often go to the ones in Hanoi and this statement speaks for itself. You can watch it again, and again.
But back to the roots.
How did it start? Lune Production was created by:
- The director Tuan Le, the first and only Vietnamese artist to work with the largest theatrical producer in the world (Cirque du Soleil) as a solo artist. Yet, he started to juggle when he was 6 to support his family after his mother died
- Performance director Nguyen Lan Maurice, born in France, trained in the National Circus School in Vietnam and performed for Cirque Plume in France,
- Music director Nhat Ly Nguyen, brother of Maurice, who grew up in Vietnam but was born in France where he also got his music degree
- Choreographer Tan Loc Nguyen, who combines contemporary dance aesthetics and classical ballet and the result is, well, simply ART.
But the start was not easy, it took time to fill the auditorium, first reactions were even critical and there were protesters saying this is not honouring Vietnamese culture and circus without clowns or magic tricks is not a circus.
They had to become big abroad before becoming big at home too.
The show has toured around the world from 2009 to 2012, with over 300 shows from France to Hong Kong. Since then, other shows of Lune Production travelled to Taiwan, Brazil, or New Zealand. This month (07/2019), the show will awe the audience in at the Sydney Opera House throughout 6 sessions.
My Village was their first creation.
What other shows can you look up?
- A O Show – available in Saigon and Hoi An
- Teh Dar – available in Hoi An
- Palao – available in Hoi An
- The Mist – available in Saigon
Nowadays you can see young contemporary artists portraying daily civil simple life, farming, and building activities, as well as games, through circus, acrobatics, dance, singing, and more than 20 instruments. Yes, there are no dialogues, just stories told through lean bodies, mime, stunts, juggling, acrobatics and bamboo sounds.
What better material to pick than bamboo. It is light yet supportive, resilient yet flexible. Much like Vietnamese people.
Lights creating an amazing atmosphere, juggling with bamboo props that will make you feel like the clumsiest person ever, amazing facial expressions and smooth movements of artists up in the thin air. They are hanging on ropes from the ceiling or just simply balancing on a bamboo stick or each other’s heads and hands, still preserving aspects of comedy and interaction with the audience. Sounds dreamy, doesn’t it?
And they paved the way for more artists too.
Fun fact:
In the TV show Britain’s Got Talent 2018, brothers Giang Quoc Co and Giang Quoc Nghiep, were praised by usually critical judge Simon Cowell for their acrobatic stunts. They even hold a Guinness World record for the Most consecutive stairs climbed while balancing a person on the head!
It takes dedication, passion and training.
The choreography and venue of My Village:
It shows thousands of hours invested and litres of drops of sweat left on the podium. It is up to you, where you choose to see it. One Hanoi location of My Village is the Opera house, the other is the Vietnam Tuong Theater. We prefer the latter since it is smaller and you will get a good view of the stage no matter the ticket.
After the show, artists even meet you in the lobby and you can snap a picture with them! However, no taking pictures during the show 🙂
Now visited by tourists from the USA, Australia, Europe, Thailand, Japan and many more, My Village show is currently ranked #6 of 235 things to do in Hanoi on Tripadvisor. Some of the adjectives used in reviews are: fabulous, great, incredible, a must-see, beautiful, creative, artistic, impressive, breathtaking. Summa summarum, with tickets costing 700,000 VND-2,100,000 VND (30 USD-90 USD), this show should definitely be on your list of things that are not-to-be-missed in Hanoi, as it is a great value for money.
And if you will feel hungry after the show, do not miss out on these dishes and restaurants in Hanoi.
Do you want a good deal on both feasts for your eyes and your stomach? Consider hiring a local travel agency to plan your authentic trip.
