Elevating political agendas with the power of art

Image in the program

Image in the program "You are Ho Chi Minh ".

In recent years, many political art programs, especially events celebrating major national holidays, have made a strong shift in creative thinking and staging. There, artistic language is no longer simply used to decorate and illustrate political content, but has truly become a means of conveying profound messages, helping historical imprints and national spirit to "touch" the hearts of viewers in a way that is both authentic and moving.

2024 and 2025 are the years marking many important historical milestones of the country, the public has had the opportunity to enjoy many large-scale commemorative programs using art technology. A typical example is " Dien Bien Phu - Golden Milestone of History" held at 7/5 Square, Dien Bien Phu City, Dien Bien Province to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the victory "famous in five continents, shaking the world".

The combination of symphonic music, animation, dance... and modern lighting technology painted a vivid picture of the entire campaign, with images of hundreds of soldiers pulling cannons, bicycle convoys transporting goods..., creating a majestic, sacred space.

Another highlight is the “Spring of Reunification” program celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification Day, held at the Creative Park, Ho Chi Minh City. Not only does the program realistically depict historical milestones, it is also a symphony of emotions woven from narration, music, dance, documentary images and delicately staged stage scenes, evoking the flow of history in a very natural way.

Taking place at Ba Dinh Square, Hanoi, the program “You are Ho Chi Minh” celebrating the 135th anniversary of Uncle Ho’s birthday is a memorable artistic mark. The journey of President Ho Chi Minh’s thoughts, soul and legacy is vividly recreated through the language of music, poetry, dance, stage performances and visual projections, taking the audience from reminiscence to contemplation, from gratitude to the desire to learn, contribute and follow his example…

No less impressive, the program "Memories Left Behind" held in Tay Ninh province to celebrate the 95th anniversary of the Party's founding, the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South, National Reunification and the 80th anniversary of the People's Public Security Tradition Day chose to stage it in the form of a grand musical on a semi-realistic stage.

The “meeting” of historical images and modern artistic language, along with evocative scenes, dances, and poetic music, created a dialogue between the past and the present, realistically depicting the feats of the People’s Public Security Forces in the cause of protecting the Fatherland, leaving a deep echo in the hearts of the audience…

Obviously, when art is placed in the right place and its value is promoted, historical and political values are not only "conveyed" but also "inspired", helping the political program go beyond the framework of a celebration to become a highly anticipated cultural event, arousing faith, pride and national spirit.

Choreographer Tuyet Minh, Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Dance Artists Association - who has been the scriptwriter and general director of many impressive commemorative programs such as "Remaining Memories", "Independence Star"... affirmed: The artistic transformation of commemorative programs to serve politics is also an inevitable direction so that political messages can spread deeply and naturally.

Because in the context of modern media, the public, especially young people, are often less convinced by dry forms of exhortation. And art is an effective means of expression to "soften" the form of propaganda, bringing the public into the flow of history through the language of emotions, symbols, music and images.

Furthermore, when many genres such as symphonies, choirs, musicals, etc. are integrated into political programs to increase the heroic and grandiose color, the gap between high art and popular art is also shortened.

However, to successfully carry out programs that both ensure political messages and make artistic impressions is not easy. It requires the production team to have deep enough thinking and careful investment, because if the performance is not up to par or goes too far, it can easily cause adverse effects.

With creative experience, successfully staging many unique circus programs on the occasions of the Party's founding anniversary, National Day, the liberation of the Capital, especially the series of programs "Going with the years" performed annually on the occasion of War Invalids and Martyrs' Day (July 27), People's Artist Tong Toan Thang, Director of the Vietnam Circus Federation, said that the most important thing when staging political art programs is to maintain the spirit of history, respect the truth, but not be stereotyped in form.

Even though the subject is familiar, each program still needs a new approach through artistic creation. That is why, in addition to researching documents, he always tries to talk to historical witnesses to be inspired by living documents, thereby finding characters, details and ways of expression that are not repeated.

If you follow the programs of the Vietnam Circus Federation in recent years, it will not be surprising to see that many works with strong political colors still attract large audiences and continuously "sell out". That is because the continuity of the script is always emphasized, the performances are not separate but blend into a whole with a clear message.

Along with enjoying the talent and performance techniques of the artists, the audience also experiences the parallel of circus and many other forms, of traditional and contemporary art combined with modern stage technology. This is also the "key" that makes the mark for many performances that have attracted diverse audiences of the Federation in recent times such as "Cuc oi", "Vet chan tren cat", "Biet han chi Vo Thi Sau", "Noi dao xa" ..., contributing to changing the prejudice that circus is only for young audiences.

Sharing more about her personal creative process, choreographer Tuyet Minh said that for large-scale commemorative programs, she had to spend a whole year researching the field and many historical sources to be able to complete the script, from which she found a way to transform it into artistic material.

She emphasized that for a political art program to truly reach the audience, it requires a holistic mindset, close collaboration from the entire creative team, and a smooth connection between the elements: From script, music, dance, stage, fine arts to projection technology - all must blend together to create emotional sequences and lasting aesthetic value.

According to the Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Dance Artists Association, with large-scale outdoor programs, it is even more necessary to have a clear artistic idea, because if the chain of artistic elements is broken, the program will be diluted and unattractive.

Especially in the context of technology, creators need to know how to control their use of effective elements at the right time and place. Because in the end, the vitality of a political art program does not lie in the technical display but in the ability to touch the hearts of viewers with real emotions, serious artistic thinking, and profound messages.

Source: https://baotuyenquang.com.vn/nang-tam-chuong-trinh-chinh-luan-bang-suc-manh-nghe-thuat-213836.html