Thoại Miêu: Thoại Mỹ's sister, used to live in a 2,300 m2 villa, lost her husband and became a nun, practicing Buddhism

People's Artist Thoại Miêu's hometown is in Quảng Nam - Đà Nẵng, but she was born (in 1953) and raised in Saigon. People's Artist Thoại Miêu's real name is Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hoa, people often call her Ngọc Hoa.

In the family, there are 12 siblings (5 boys, 7 girls), but only the older sister (fifth) and the youngest sister, Meritorious Artist Thoai My, follow reformed opera. Since childhood, Ngoc Hoa loved reformed opera, but her family was poor so she did not have the conditions to go to the theater. At that time, her adoptive grandmother's family was quite wealthy, so Ngoc Hoa asked her parents to let her live with her adoptive grandmother.

The female artist went to school and helped her grandmother with housework so that on Saturday nights, her grandmother would take her to the theater to watch cải lương. Having seen performances at the Da Ly Huong, Thanh Minh - Thanh Nga troupes, Ngoc Hoa idolized Thanh Nga and My Chau. When she got home, Ngoc Hoa often hummed. Having loved cải lương, when she heard Ngoc Hoa sing, her grandmother realized that her singing voice had potential. Her grandmother took Ngoc Hoa to the musician Muoi Phu to learn traditional singing and cải lương for nearly 3 years. During this time, Ngoc Hoa practiced by following teacher Muoi Phu to sing at the musician's shop or at traditional singing parties, so her breath, voice, and rhythm were stable.

In 1969, Ngoc Hoa was specially admitted to the Saigon National School of Music and Drama, Department of Cai Luong Actors. Ngoc Hoa studied in the same class as Do Quyen and Tai Luong (sisters of People's Artists Tai Linh and Chi Linh) and this class only had 3 students. All 3 were taught by famous Cai Luong masters such as People's Artist Nguyen Thanh Chau, People's Artist Phung Ha, Artist Duy Lan, Artist Kim Cuc, Artist Bich Thuan, Artist Mai Thanh, so later, all 3 artists became famous. At the end of 1971, when graduating from school, Ngoc Hoa was already firmly established in singing and acting.

During her time at school, Ngoc Hoa was invited by the Drama Troupe of artist Chin Som and artist Duy Chuc to collaborate on Saigon Radio. She remembers that at that time, she, Ngoc Dan Thanh (who was living abroad) and artists Tu Trinh and Mai Thanh were famous on Saigon Radio with the radio opera Tran Minh Kho Chuoi by composer Duy Lan.

In addition, Mr. Nam Chau established the Nu Ban group for the school's students to practice their profession. Ngoc Hoa also became famous with the trio in the play Truong Han: Ngoc Hoa as Duong Quy Phi, Do Quyen as An Loc Son and Tai Luong as Duong Minh Hoang. When the trio officially graduated, Do Quyen and Tai Luong were accepted by the troupe manager to sing; Ngoc Hoa was also invited by the troupe manager but was not allowed to sing... Because, Ngoc Hoa's adoptive grandmother, although she loved Cai Luong, considered Cai Luong "a lowly singer". At that time, Ngoc Hoa was sad and often cried secretly because her dream did not come true.

In the early days after 1975, Saigon gradually stabilized social order. Art units were consolidated and reorganized for operation. Upon receiving this information from friends, Ngoc Hoa immediately registered to sing. She lied to her adoptive grandmother: "If you know the profession but do not sing to serve the people, you will be criticized and reprimanded by the revolution...". Hearing this, her grandmother urged Ngoc Hoa: "Okay, hurry up and prepare your things and go sing." Ngoc Hoa was as happy as if celebrating a festival.

After that, Ngoc Hoa was decided by her superiors to be a reserve actress at the Saigon II Opera Troupe. At that time, the troupe had a very strong cast with Le Thuy, Thanh Tuan, Diep Lang, Giang Chau, Ngoc Bich, My Chau, Tuan Thanh, etc. After 4 months in the troupe, Ngoc Hoa and Do Quyen still had no roles, every night they just sat on the wings watching their seniors perform. At the end of 1975, the Liberation Art Troupe (HCMC) was born. In the early stages of the troupe, Ngoc Hoa sang the role of a student in the play Tyrant by playwright Le Duy Hanh. This was a milestone in the singing career of People's Artist Thoai Mieu.

When she received the role of the third actress in the play "Bao Chua", artist Ngoc Hoa (returned from the North, wife of Meritorious Artist Thanh Hung) sang the main actress role of Yen Ly. In the same theater troupe, there cannot be two artists with the same stage name, so Ngoc Hoa ran to see teacher Nam Chau to ask for a different stage name. People's Artist Nam Chau consulted a Sino-Vietnamese book and gave Ngoc Hoa a new stage name, Thoai Mieu. Teacher Nam Chau explained that "Mieu" means cat, "Thoai" means fragrant; fragrant cat is the hidden meaning of a beautiful name. And from then on, she took the stage name Thoai Mieu until now.

Thoại Miêu is famous for her roles as Tuyết Mai (play "The Durian Tree Blooms"), Ngọc Hà (play "Ngoc Han's Confessions"), Thiên Hương (play "Thousands of Miles for Her Husband"), Hoàng Anh (play "The Lady of Ben Nghe")...

In 1985, artist Thoại Miêu was awarded a gold medal for her role as Hồng in the play "Dốc sương mắt" (Foggy Slope) by author Lê Duy Hạnh. After that, the female artist returned to troupe 284 and continued to shine with many roles in plays such as: "Nhung sao không ten", "Thiên Kiều công chua", "Kiếp chồng chung", "Tô Ánh Nguyệt"...

In 2019, she was honored to be awarded the title of People's Artist by the State along with veteran cai luong artists: Thanh Tuan, Thanh Ngan, Minh Vuong, Thanh Nam, Giang Chau,...

In 2022, when participating in the 5th Capital Theater Festival with the role of Queen Mother Tran Thi Dang in the play Royal Power - The Tong Thi Quyen Case, People's Artist Thoai Mieu was awarded a Gold Medal, but she sent a letter asking not to accept it, giving the opportunity to young artists.

People's Artist Thoại Miêu wrote: "I request that the organizing committee not consider awarding a medal for my role to give the opportunity to the younger generation, who need it more than I do. I have been awarded the title of People's Artist by the State, the most noble title in the life of an artist.

I am 70 years old but I still participate in the play to have the opportunity to return to the Hanoi capital stage so that the audience can remember my name" (source: Dan Viet newspaper).

The People's Artist is also the one who guided her younger sister - Meritorious Artist Thoai My to follow the profession and become a promising actress of the Cai Luong stage.

During the Covid pandemic, People's Artist Thoại Miêu and her sister sold goods online to improve their finances during difficult times. Unexpectedly, the female People's Artist sisters received negative comments from the audience, "Old artists have passed their prime so they have to sell goods online."

This opinion made both NSND Thoại Miêu and her sister cry bitterly during the livestream. Thoại Miêu cried and said: "Many viewers said it and it broke my heart, selling products on livestream is not out of date. Because everyone has to live, has to survive to overcome this difficult time. We should judge artists through their works and films, not by comparing them by looking at how they make a living."

However, not everyone knows that People's Artist Thoai Mieu was once very rich. She once owned a luxurious 2,300 m2 villa located right on Provincial Road 7, Thai My Commune, Cu Chi, Ho Chi Minh City.

Inside the villa there is 1 living room, 4 bedrooms, all are master bedrooms with bathrooms inside. However, the female People's Artist sold this villa to an American Vietnamese.

Besides her career, People's Artist Thoại Miêu had a marriage of more than 30 years with her husband, artist Phan Quốc Hùng - former Director of the Trần Hữu Trang Opera House before he passed away due to liver disease. They have 2 sons.

Talking about this marriage, she once said that she was lucky to have a good husband who often encouraged her to live optimistically and think positively.

"I am lucky to have a happy marriage, my husband loves me very much. He passed away suddenly, leaving me and the children behind. I believe that somewhere far away, he will feel the pride and love of his wife, children and grandchildren always towards him," she confided to Vietnamnet.

At the ag.e of over 70, People's Artist Thoại Miêu spends her time taking care of her family and rarely appears in public. She also suffers from some old-age diseases such as high bloo.d pressure and diabetes. The artist is aware of her health, so she takes her medication regularly and has regular check-ups as prescribed by her doctor.

She took refuge, practiced, and chose a peaceful life. The artist believes that the best medicine for each person is to let go of all worries, live a moderate life, and not compete or be jealous. For her, frivolous fame and fortune are now left behind. She also lives slowly after years of worrying about her family and serving the audience.

Artist Binh Tinh: Carrying the whole family alone, quietly helping many colleagues Thảo Mai19:28:31 29/03/2025Binh Tinh is the daughter of the Duc Loi - Bach Mai traditional opera artist couple. Her family has 4 generations pursuing the art of opera. Binh Tinh herself has had a passion for opera since she was very young.