Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet: Quit her job to save her life, living on the small amount of money she saved when she was young

Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet belongs to the generation of veteran artists of Southern reformed opera, at the same time as People's Artist Le Thuy, Bo Bo Hoang... She was once a bright face, collaborating with many famous reformed opera troupes.

Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet's real name is Nguyen Thi Thanh Nguyet, from Bac Lieu. In 1962, Thanh Nguyet was introduced to the Hoa Sen theater troupe and became the main actress in the plays: Sanh duong dao dong, Nguoi me Viet Nam... In 1964, she returned to sing on the Kim Chuong stage and became famous for her role as Tieu Long Nu in the play Song long than chuong. In 1965, she won the Thanh Tam Gold Medal at the age of 18. In the following years, she continuously collaborated with many different troupes such as: Kim Chung 5, Thai Duong, Tieng Hat Dan Toc...

Thanh Nguyet was once married to playwright Moc Linh - a famous playwright in the reformed opera world. They had a son together named The Phi. However, their marriage soon fell apart. After that, the female artist married Quoc Nhi - a colleague in the Thanh Minh opera troupe.

Many years later, Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet is still a name that leaves many impressions on stage with the role of Thi Binh in Loi Vu, the role of the blind mother in the play Ao Cua Truoc Chua, Co Ba in the play Kiep Chong Chung...

Since the reformed opera stage was narrowed, Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet participated in TV series such as Love Whirlpool (2005), Dormitory (2013), Life Turn (2014)...

After many ups and downs on stage, Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet has now retired to a peaceful life with Quoc Nhi. The artist couple is admired by many people for their nearly 50-year marriage together.

Talking to us, artist Thanh Nguyet said that she is currently enjoying the joy of old age with her husband Quoc Nhi. The female artist has a son, although they do not live together, he often visits his parents. At the age of nearly 80, artist Thanh Nguyet confided that she has many diseases related to the heart, blood pressure, blood fat, and varicose veins in her legs, so she often swells. In addition, the female artist's right eye has retinal hemorrhage, so she can barely see anything, while her left eye can see about 80%, so her daily activities are greatly affected.

Due to poor health, artist Thanh Nguyet has almost not appeared on stage or in movies for many years. She confided that although many directors invited her to act in movies, she had to refuse because her eyesight was poor and she could not read the script. Although she was passionate about her career but had to put aside her artistic activities, artist Thanh Nguyet felt heartbroken and sad. She choked up: "I am very sad, sadder than a broken heart. Honestly, I have never known what a broken heart is, but this feeling is very sad. I miss my job, I love my job, but I have to endure it because it is unavoidable. At this age, there is nothing I can do."

The actress of the movie Return 3 confided that her consolation is that her husband Quoc Nhi is always there to accompany and share. The happy artist expressed that her husband is very kind and loves his wife and children, so "there is nothing to be sad about". She added about her life in old age: "Now he and I depend on each other, living on vegetables and porridge every day. He is very easy-going, he can eat anything, and always cares for his wife and children, so I have nothing to be sad about. Although he also has many illnesses, he is healthier than me thanks to his diligence in exercising. We have been together since 1976 until now, going through the ups and downs of life together. Now that we can no longer work, we stay at home and talk to each other. Sometimes when I want to go out, he takes me. Sometimes when friends invite us over to their house or ask us to go for coffee and chat, we go together. Life is impermanent, we just have to be optimistic, live each day happily."

Recalling the golden age, artist Thanh Nguyet's eyes lit up with happiness. The singer of the play "The Ferryman by the River" reminisced: "During the time of reformed opera, we didn't know what Tet was because we were busy serving the masses. We performed 3 shows a day, only had a few hours of rest before continuing, and when we came home at night, we were exhausted but very happy. We had just received a lot of financial support and had a large audience, which was happiness. Those days were so glorious, every time I mention them, beautiful memories come back one after another with an indescribable pride."

Although she has not worked in the profession for many years, every time she goes out, artist Thanh Nguyet is still recognized by the audience, asked to take pictures, and asked about her life. For her, that is the joy and blessing that the profession has given her. According to the veteran artist, many people think that this profession is very ungrateful, but she does not see it that way. She expressed her opinion: "The profession is not ungrateful, it is very sacred so I really appreciate my profession. Whether it is ungrateful or not depends on people living incompletely and without morality. I said this sentence a bit offensively, there are too many people like that so artists get a bad reputation. People are ungrateful, but the profession is not ungrateful to anyone. If you live a decent life and respect the profession, "you will not run out of the blessings of the profession until you are old". Like Ms. Kim Cuong, Le Thuy, Mr. Minh Vuong now, the grace of the profession is too great".

Artist Thanh Nguyet added: "Art is boundless, it's not easy to bring tears to people's eyes, nor is it easy to make people laugh naturally. People have to be moved to cry, people have to be satisfied and happy to laugh. This profession is very strange, not everyone can be a true actor. Therefore, those who live with the profession properly will "live" a long life in the profession."

People's Artist Thanh Tuan: While singing, his heart disease relapsed, he is no longer in critical condition, and is not asking for money. Keng14:02:52 28/03/2025Artist Thanh Tuan was born in 1948, real name Nguyen Thanh Liem, born and raised in Quang Ngai. He had a passion for reformed opera since childhood, then studied with teacher Bay Trach.