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In Hanoi we went to a fantastic water puppetry show. The stage is actually a pool of water perhaps 3 feet deep backed by a short bamboo curtain. Above the bamboo curtain was a model wat (or temple). Musicians sat to the side and played an amazing assortment of instruments that we had never seen before.
The puppets enter the stage through the bamboo curtain and are controlled, seemingly magically, by people behind the curtain. They dance and swirl all over the water. Our favorite act was the “raising ducks and chasing fox.” Even though everything was in Vietnamese, it was still funny. There were people puppets tending to ducks that floated around in little rows. Suddenly a leopard-looking “fox” puppet came out, stole one of the ducks off the end of the row, ducked under the water and somehow ran up a nearby tree. Not only was it entertaining, it was pretty impressive puppetry. Another really cool act was the “fairy dance,” where two dancing puppets came out at a time, and two more joined in from behind the curtain, all dancing in perfect unison. It was very cool. In another act puppets paraded around the perimeter of the stage which was really cool, and we still can’t figure out how they did it! And nothing would be traditional in Vietnam without the requisite dragon. These dragons happened to shoot fireworks from their mouths! Very cool. It was great entertainment for $3.
Afterwards we went to the jazz club and were most impressed with the music. It was funny though because at about 11:15 the band took a bow and packed up, but we hung out slowly finishing our drinks. The waiter came over to our table and said, “Finished now,” and turned off the light over our table! It was so funny. We found out later that at least in Laos there is a government curfew, and we think the same must be true in Hanoi.
All-in-all, it was a great night of entertainment in Hanoi!