Currently, many traditional art fields are facing many difficulties as audiences are gradually decreasing, and theaters have few opportunities to light up.
For example, Cheo - a type that once held an important position in cultural life - is now facing the risk of fading away as fewer and fewer people study, low incomes make young people no longer interested in pursuing it.
Many Cheo artists have to struggle to make a living by doing many other jobs to both maintain their lives and pursue their passions. Some people try to find opportunities on social networks by building their own media channels, but the number of successful cases is very rare.
In that context, NSND Thanh Ngoan - Director of the Center for Conservation of Traditional Performing Arts of Vietnam - who has held the position of Director of the Vietnam Cheo Theater for 10 years, said that the Resolution of the 14th Party Congress, along with previous orientations such as Resolution 80-NQ/TW, has become an important fulcrum for professionals to have more faith in pursuing the path of preserving and developing traditional arts.
Sharing with Lao Dong reporters, People's Artist Thanh Ngoan said that this is a very necessary driving force for innovation. In the current "flat world", if there is no care and in-depth investment in culture, it is very easy to have the risk of "cultural bleeding": "The State's continued affirmation of the importance of national culture in general and traditional art in particular shows the right direction in efforts to preserve and promote national cultural identity".
Besides the story of salary and bonus regimes for artists, NSND Thanh Ngoan is also concerned about the "bottlenecks" in the work of preserving traditional art today.
According to the female artist, in-depth personnel is a big problem. To preserve, there must be people who understand the profession seriously and deeply. But reality shows that this force is gradually "losing", many older artisans and artists are old and weak, even gone.
Besides, finding researchers and artists who are capable of preserving and teaching traditional art is also very difficult.
Meanwhile, the story of "food, clothing, and money" is a great pressure. Artists living by traditional art are currently struggling very hard. Although salaries have been adjusted according to job positions, they still do not meet living needs.
People's Artist Thanh Ngoan pointed out the reality that retired artists are even more difficult to maintain their lives if they only rely on their pensions.
It can be said that counting on your fingers those who can both nurture passion and ensure life. Like myself, 44 years in the profession, retiring with a salary of about 10 million VND, it is very difficult to keep up with current social costs," People's Artist Thanh Ngoan shared.
Not to mention, NSND Thanh Ngoan is a rare artist who holds a PhD degree, twice holding the position of director in the field of traditional art.
She recounted that many elderly artists still want to pass on the profession, but their health does not allow it. Some people are 70-80 years old and want to teach, but the salary is not enough for taxi fares. They still do it for enthusiasm, not for income.
The concerns of veteran artists have also been raised in the Resolution of the 14th Party Congress, with the requirement to better care for the contingent of artists, and at the same time improve the preferential treatment mechanism and create favorable conditions for creative activities.
From those orientations, NSND Thanh Ngoan expects the policy to be effectively implemented in practice soon, thereby helping artists to be attached to the profession with their own income, and at the same time restore the attraction of the stage to the public, especially the younger generation.
