Saigon’s ÀỐ Show

Apr 152013

A O Show

If you like bamboo big-time, you’ll love Saigon’s ÀỐ Show.

Last week, my friend Rick called to let me know he had an extra free ticket to go see the ÀỐ Show at Saigon’s Opera House. Did I want to go?

I knew nothing of the ÀỐ Show. But, amazingly, after all these years in Saigon, it would be my first visit to the Opera House. I’d been mildly curious to peek inside for years, but I was never quite motivated enough to cross wide Đồng Khởi street and climbed those Opera House stairs. So, YES, let’s go!

A O Show

The show was to begin at 6:00 pm. The pre-show ice tea and snacks in the lobby were completely unimpressive. Mmmn? Concern concern.

A O Show Upon entering the theater, however, things changed. Quite a lovely and dramatic opera house.

Thank you Rick for this photo and a great show!

Rick is a bit of an historian and briefly explained to me the evolution of the Opera House renovations/transformations – from its elegant and ornate French origins in the early 1900’s, through it’s stripped-down governmental-functional space under the South Vietnamese government’s reign, to the current restoration by the we’re-communist-but-want-to-impress-the-tourists government.

The ÀỐ Show itself was lively and fun, with a non-stop series of bamboo-enveloped vignettes depicting Vietnamese themes and culture from early village farms to the streets of today’s Saigon. The music was great and varied – surreal sounds of ancient Vietnamese instruments, classic love ballads and pounding hip-hop. The dancing and acrobatics were energetic and thrilling. The staff was beautiful and handsome, young and sexy, and mostly athletic.

A O Show

There was a bit of an amateurish Cirque-du-Soleid feel to the show. But, for sure, visually beautiful, fun, and entertaining.

A O Show The ÀỐ Show – absolutely, worth the visit to see the Opera House, enjoy a full hour of non-stop fun entertainment, and support Vietnam’s young artists.