They call him the magician, because while his stage has many actors - water puppeteer Phan Thanh Liem is the only person pulling the strings.

Liem was born into a family with seven previous generations having been water puppeteers. However Liem was not satisfied with the fact that water puppeteers have to depend on each other in organising shows.

It’s not just manpower - traditionally water puppets perform on a pond, and require a tonne of equipment.

Liem’s father, craftsman Phan Van Ngai, was the man behind the current water puppet “system” and also the inventor of the famous character Teu.

He was also the manager of the first private puppet troupe in Vietnam. However he also dreamt of being able to run a stage himself. But it was his son, Liem, that turned that utopian idea into a reality.

Liem points out that in the past, puppeteers only used very small puppets, not the big ones like Vietnamese water puppetry theatres are now using. He designed his own tiny puppets and created a small stage that is assembled so it can be taken anywhere.

With these things, Liem can organise a water puppetry show very easily, with only one puppeteer – himself.

At the beginning, the director of the Vietnam Puppetry Theatre criticised Liem for “distorting” Vietnam’s water puppetry but former PM Phan Van Khai praised him for his creativeness.

Liem’s mini stage can go where big puppetry theatres cannot. Sometimes Liem appears at a fair or a mountain resort or a rural school. He is still the only one performing this way.

At first, he performed with only one puppet but now he can control up to eight puppets at the same time.

He has been invited to perform water puppetry alone in many countries. Liem said he was very proud to perform water puppetry abroad. He said through simple extracts like buffalo fighting, boat racing or the dragon dance, foreign audience can enjoy Vietnamese culture and the skills of the puppeteer.

Witnessing his talent at controlling puppets in a 1sq.m stage, a foreigner invited Liem to tour to Europe but he refused. “I can’t live alone abroad for one month. It is so sad.”

Liem, however, has traveled often overseas to perform water puppetry in his mini stage but he doesn’t earn his living from this job.

“Money is a problem for a group of puppeteers but for me alone, it is very simple. If the host has financial difficulty, I’m willing to perform if they pay me traveling expenses only,” Liem said.

His major source of income comes from selling puppets from his home.

Liem also says he cannot serve the audience alone so he is willing to teach others his trade.

Thu Huyen