Hong Nga

Hong Nga (1945-    ) is a famous comedic actress and performer of Southern Vietnamese folk opera known as Cai Luong.  

It can be said that Hong Nga's personal life filled with heartaches resembles some of the most tragic Vietnamese plays she has acted in.  Orphaned at the age of 3, her childhood years were spent living in uncertainty as she was shuffled from different households of distant relatives and acquaintances who would look after her.  By the age of 14, she was on her own earning a living as a street vendor.  As a way of escaping her harsh reality. from a young age Hong Nga became fascinated by the Cai Luong theater and dreamed of one day becoming a Vietnamese folk opera actress.  Blessed with a natural clear yet dramatic singing voice for Vietnamese folk opera, Hong Nga was taken under the wings of legendary Cai Luong theater coach Tam Den as one of his pupils.  At the age of 15, Hong Nga turned professional as a performer of Southern Vietnamese folk opera.  Standing only at 4 feet and 11 inches tall and weighing 130 pounds, she was often cast in parts playing the mother of the lead character in Cai Luong plays.  Among her most well known performances in Cai Luong and dramatic plays include Co Gai Do Long, Tuyet Tinh Ca, Me Yeu, Tinh Nghe Si and Don Con Ve.  

Like many performance artists in Vietnam during the initial years after the Fall of Saigon Hong Nga who was divorced with five children to raise, she struggled to make ends meet.  In order to get more work, she delved into comedy.  Hong Nga would soon find her niche as a comedic actress as she would bring the house down with her wacky antics making audiences laugh uncontrollably at playhouse theaters in Ho Chi Minh City and throughout Vietnam.  Despite her success, due to economic conditions in Vietnam then Hong Nga continued to face financial hardships raising 5 children on her salary as a theater actress.  She then turned to a close friend for assistance in raising her two oldest daughters.  The painful decision she had to make in giving up her two oldest daughters would turn out to be one of her biggest regrets in Hong Nga's life.  In 1980, both of Hong Nga's oldest daughters, then ages 5 and 3, went missing after traveling to Switzerland under the guardianship of her close friend.  For the next 15 years, Hong Nga had to hold back her tears and forge ahead in her career in order to provide for her 3 younger children.  She toured Switzerland on numerous occasions, each time hoping to find the whereabouts of her missing daughters.  Finally, in 1995 through the help of an audience member who had heard her cry Hong Nga was reunited with her two long lost daughters.

Hong Nga and Dam Vinh Hung
at her live show in 2008

Thanh Sang and Hong Nga

In 2005, Hong Nga had a supporting role in the comedy movie, Khi Dan Ong Co Bau (When Men Get Pregnant), alongside an all-star cast including Nguyen Phi Hung, Truong Ngoc Anh, Bao Quoc, Ngoc Giau, Hong Van and Phuong Thanh.  On January of 2008, Hong Nga performed for 3 nights a live concert show held in her honor, 48 Nam:  Nu Cuoi va Nuoc Mat, at the Trong Dong Venue in Ho Chi Minh City to commemorate her 48 years as an entertainer.  Featured guest celebrity performers at the show included Bao Quoc, Viet Anh, Hoang Son, Anh Vu, Thuy Nga, Thoai My, Diep Lang, Hoai Linh, Thanh Sang, Le Thuy, Kim Tu Long, Phuong Thanh and Dam Vinh Hung.  On May of that same year, Hong Nga appeared on volume 92 of the popular overseas Vietnamese video series, Paris By Night, produced by Thuy Nga in a duet number, Vong Co Long Me, with singer Huong Lan.  In 2015, to celebrate her 70th birthday Hong Nga performed at her second live concert show, Nua The Ky Con Tam Van Nha To, held in her honor at the Hoa Binh music venue in Ho Chi Minh City with returning featured guest celebrity performers Bao Quoc and Hoai Linh along with Ngoc Giau, Dieu Hien, Ngoc Huong, Phuong Hong Thuy, Linh Tam, Que Tran, Mai Quoc Huy, Hoai Lam, Truong Giang, Minh Vuong, Viet Huong and Cam Ly.