Is there any theatre for enjoying an art performance in Saigon? Which art performances should you watch to explore Vietnamese cultures? Let's check it out!
"I want to enjoy the art performance in Saigon? Where to go?" There are plenty of theatres in this big city for you to enjoy creative and attractive live shows, art performances and so on. The cultural shows mostly perform the culture, tradition, and folklore of Vietnam in the past and today. This is colorfully displayed by talented artists with traditional costumes, folklore music, and musical instruments.
Theatres for the art performance in Saigon
Saigon Opera House
Most of the shows are performed at the Municipal Theatre, also called Saigon Opera House. The building was designed as a classical European opera house and influenced by the flamboyant style of The Third Republic. The building has a main seating floor plus two levels of seating above with a capacity of accommodating 1800 people. For some art performances, you can buy tickets at the ticket booth every day from 9:00 and 16:30. Otherwise, you can find tickets online and book in advance. It should be noted that you can spend time before or after the shows walking around the Saigon Opera House, especially on Đồng Khởi street, which is seen as one of the most beautiful developed streets in Ho Chi Minh with 5-star or 6-star hotels and restaurants.
Address: 07 Công Trường Lam Sơn, Bến Nghé Ward, District 1
Hòa Bình Theatre
Being one of the biggest and oldest theatres in the city and with a capacity of 2500 seats, Hòa Bình Theatre is the best choice for art performances, music concerts, and special occasions. Although it is not located right at the city center, this theatre is considered as one of the city symbols. Actually, this theatre is not the first one pumping out of the mind of people, even Vietnamese, as an attractive destination as it is mostly used for national special occasions. Therefore, when some music concerts or special live shows take place, you can buy tickets at its ticket booth or online.
Address: 240 Street 3/2, Ward 12, District 10
Bến Thành Theatre
Belong to the Cultural Center of District 1 with a capacity of 1041 seats, Bến Thành Theatre is used for live shows or performances at the district level. The theatre is designed on a small scale even though it was reconstructed one time invested by Japan. And of course, this is not the attraction in Ho Chi Minh City unless you want to watch some live shows there.
Address: 06 Mạc Đĩnh Chi, Bến Nghé Ward, District 1
Art performance in Saigon
À Ố Show
This is the most highly reviewed and recommended performance that you should enjoy one time when traveling to Ho Chi Minh City. Its Vietnamese name is À Ố show; however Vietnamese is a tonal language which makes it hard for foreigners to say this word. Hence, you can say it as À (Ah) Ố (Oh) Show in English. The name is weird and strange for both Vietnamese or foreigners.
À Ố Show is a mix of the traditional Vietnamese countryside and modern urbanization today. The talented artists perform bamboo circus mixed with circus art, acrobatics, contemporary dance, and live music played with instruments. The show reminds audiences of the vivid life stories happening in the noisy and ironic urban cities or peaceful and quiet villages in Vietnam. It should be noted that all the props are made from bamboo making this show unique compared to others. From the instruments to the house, from the basket to the bridge, everything is made from bamboo revealing the bamboo culture of Vietnam from the past until today. Bamboo is believed as the symbol of youth, strength, or solidarity of Vietnam
Used for one of the tourist attractions, À Ố Show is shown at the Saigon Opera House only. For À Ố Show, you can buy tickets directly at the ticket booth of Saigon Opera House or in some tourist destinations around the city, such as the War Remnants Museum; however, it should be noted that this show is not performed all the time. The best way to book the ticket in advance is booking online as there is a show timetable for the whole month and sometimes, you can get the promotions from some websites.
Address: 07 Công Trường Lam Sơn, Bến Nghé Ward, District 1
Ticket price: 700.000 VND - 1.600.000 VND
Opening Hours: 18:00 & 20:00
The Mist Dance
The Mist is mainly focused on the rice farming life in the South of Vietnam. The talented artists use symbolic dance movements such as contemporary and ballet, acrobatics, and traditional music to perform the scenes where farmers tend to rice fields or daily live around the rice fields of farmers in Southern Vietnam. The show is also performed at Saigon Opera House, usually at the weekend, so you also have two ways to buy tickets, offline or online. Moreover, there are some luxurious tours combining watching The Mist Dance and Dining that you can use.
Address: 07 Công Trường Lam Sơn, Bến Nghé Ward, District 1
Ticket price: 630.000 VND - 1.470.000 VND
Opening Hour: 18:00
Teh Dar
With À Ố Show and The Mist, Teh Dar is produced by Lune Production which is performed at Saigon Opera House.
Teh Dar has perfectly modeled the tribal life on the Southwest Highland of Vietnam with the sounds of buffalo horn, a massive percussion instrument hailed heritage by UNESCO. There on the stage, skilled artists perform the scenes where tribes are hunting wild animals, sitting in a moonlight romance night, or the jungle’s tales of death or reincarnation.
Same as above, you can purchase tickets to Teh Dar show online and offline, or combine with Diner Tour in Ho Chi Minh City.
Address: 07 Công Trường Lam Sơn, Bến Nghé Ward, District 1
Ticket price: 630.000 VND - 1.470.000 VND
Opening Hour: 18:00 - 19:00
Golden Dragon Water Puppet Show
One of the most well-known attractive activities in Ho Chi Minh City is the Water Puppet Show. Of course, there are some theatres or museums performing water puppet shows; however, the most famous theatre is the Golden Dragon Water Puppetry Theatre. Generally, it originated from the sodden rice paddies of the Red River Delta in North Vietnam. People stand backstage and become artists by controlling the puppets with their hands on the stage of water. Although all the shows are performed in Vietnamese, tourists can also understand thanks to the vivid movements of the puppets on the water. The show models the cultures, traditions, and folklore of Vietnamese life in the past. Moreover, audiences can also enjoy traditional instrument music placed at one side of the stage.
The Show is performed twice a night making it easier to book tickets. You can also book tickets online or offline at the ticket booths or at some tour operations. And the price depends on how you book the ticket. If you buy a ticket directly at the ticket booth, it costs around 250.000 VND - 350.000 VND. If you buy it online, there are some good deals for you, but be careful with some low-quality or fake operators. If you want to combine it with a diner tour, the price is accordingly.
Address: 55B Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, Bến Thành Ward, District 1
Opening Hour: 18:30 ; 20:30
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