Bac Ninh province's Cheo art is included in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

BAC NINH - The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has just decided to include the art of Cheo in Bac Ninh province into the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage in the category of Folk Performing Arts.

The art of Cheo in Bac Ninh province is part of the traditional Vietnamese Cheo art stream, with a long history of formation and development, closely associated with the cultural life of the Northern Delta. The ancient Cheo plays and excerpts preserved today vividly reflect the social life, customs and aspirations of the Kinh Bac people through historical periods. Cheo is often performed during festivals and celebrations, and is an indispensable part of community cultural activities.

Performing Cheo art for tourists at Ba Chua Kho temple.

Researchers have noted that the art of Cheo in Bac Ninh has all the stages of transformation from its inception to the development of the performance style of "Cheo San Dinh". Cheo in Bac Ninh is divided into forms such as: Cheo in the water procession festival; Cheo in ancestor worship rituals; Cheo in Buddhist houses; Cheo troupes, semi-professional Cheo teams... In particular, in the Lim area (Tien Du), there is also a Cheo singing ritual in ancestor worship called "Cheo Chai He" or "Cheo Nhi Thap Tu Hieu" which is still commonly known as "Quan Ho Hieu" today.

Authors, directors, and actors have made many important contributions to modern Cheo in Bac Ninh province such as: Dao Thiem, Huy Co, Le Hong Hat, Thuong Luyen, Diem Loan, Thuy Tinh, Minh Chinh... Cheo villages in Bac Ninh have become the cradle of many famous artists in the Vietnamese stage arts such as: Duc Bang, Duc Thuy, Xuan Hinh, Quoc Truong, Tu Long...

The inclusion of the art of Cheo in Bac Ninh province into the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage is an important step in the strategy of preserving and promoting the value of national cultural heritage. This is also an opportunity for localities, units and artisan communities in the province to continue to consolidate the forms of preserving, teaching and promoting the art of Cheo to the younger generation, while creating a foundation for the development of cultural tourism , spreading traditional cultural heritage widely in contemporary life.

Thanh Lam

Source: https://baobacninhtv.vn/nghe-thuat-cheo-tinh-bac-ninh-duoc-dua-vao-danh-muc-di-san-van-hoa-phi-vat-the-quoc-gia-postid421524.bbg