While many traditional art forms in Vietnam are facing difficulties in attracting audiences, water puppetry has remained popular among tourists.

A water puppet show at the Thang Long Water Puppetry Theatre in Hanoi

Thang Long Water Puppetry Theatre near Hanoi's Hoan Kiem Lake hold performances throughout the year. Nguyen Hoang Tuan, director of the theatre, said they received 10,000 foreign visitors and 3,000 local visitors every month.

Audience at Thang Long Water Puppetry Theatre

The Vietnam Theatre of Song and Dance also has a 300-seat water puppetry space. Experienced puppeteers are happy to perform at the stage and it continues to find popularity with audiences.

Meanwhile, other traditional art forms like cheo, cai luong and tuong are struggling to find places in modern times, with only one or two shows a week and their artists can't live on the wages.

"Because water puppetry is well liked and popular, we have a stable income too," said puppeteer Vo Thuy Duong.

Other performing arts suffer from overly-long shows and a lack of investment, meaning they are not so popular as tourist attractions.

Puppeteer Vo Thuy Dung

Water puppet theatres have amended their plays while working closely with tourism firms. The Da Trach Love Story by Vietnam Water Puppetry Theatre is the first time installation art and paper puppetry were used in water puppetry shows in Vietnam. Director Le Hong also used world music to make the play different and more contemporary.

Nguyen Hoang Tuan said tour groups accounted for 70% to 80% of audiences. He also said the most important thing any theatre should pay attention to is the translations.

Since 2012, the Hanoi Cai Luong Theatre has piloted new programme for foreign visitors by cutting play lengths and providing English interpretation through headphones. The programme then has run for three years and has attracted more visitors.