I used to think Paris by Night was lame. The performers wore ugly sparkles, sported plastic faces, and sang annoying songs. I never enjoyed the traditional music nor the outrageous themes. In my mind, it was an embarrassment to theater, pop culture, and all Vietnamese-Americans because the cool things during my child and tweenhood consisted of rap, Britney Spears, R&B, and designer clothes that were not cut like ao dai.
Maybe is was the shame of being Vietnamese instead of being white that caused me to dislike Paris by Night so much. The program was performed in my native tongue, and therefore it couldn’t possibly be cool.
But thank goodness more than a decade has passed, and since then my curiosity for performance studies and Vietnamese culture has opened my eyes to my naive thoughts as a child. Because in reality, Paris by Night is awesome. As a breeder of V-Pop and professionalism in the theater, I have to give major props to this once ignored and even hated variety show of my past.
The Paris By Night program was created in 1983 by the company Thuy Nga as a reactionary cultural product. The tapes and DVDs still cannot be purchased legally in Vietnam today. In addition to the variety show performances, the program has served to deliver political statements about the historic Vietnam War. For instance, Paris by Night 77 featured a 30-year anniversary of the Fall of Saigon. In Paris by Night 91, there was a performance for the 40th anniversary of the Tet Offensive. Controversy has followed Paris by Night since it’s 40th video, which featured bombings that enraged Vietnamese populations all over the world.
In addition, the theatrics of the show is tremendous. Sound, camera work, and staging is ridiculously amazing and professional. The show is visually stunning with wonderful costumes, scenery and lighting. Also, with the help of a professional choreographer, the performances are actually entertaining. Paris by Night has enlisted professional directors as well, so the filming is done professionally and with a modern twist. I can’t hate on Paris by Night if it is always overachieving in a technical sense.
What else is dope about Paris by Night? It’s touring aspect. From Las Vegas to Seoul and even to Long Beach (what up socal), this show is so wide spread all around world.
In conclusion, Paris by Night is dope. It’s a sexy show with Vietnamese spice and culture. Watch it. Sing to it. Love it!
Check out Thuy Nga’s video on Bao Han’s Paris by Night journey. It’s wonderful to see the growth of this show!
Also, buy the real thing. No piracy please!
So because it is more sexualized, more westernized, more objectifying its better? I got nothing on any of those categories, but damn, if this is the way Vietnamese community wants to see things, count me out.
I agree with Anon. I don’t watch Paris By Night, but I do know it’s some sort of musical variety show. I don’t watch Paris By Night not because I think “the performers wore ugly sparkles, sported plastic faces, and sang annoying songs,” but just because it’s not my kind of music; I don’t understand anything, and my family has never watched any of these shows. The first time I was exposed to Paris By Night was when I was in high school and I went on a Vietnamese charter bus from Westminster to San Jose with my dad– 8 hours of women strutting around stage singing whatever– it doesn’t matter because they were all wearing nearly nothing. The variety show focused more on the sexualized sparkles rather than talent of a variety show. After watching 8 hours straight of it– I saw no concrete content. I really hope that those who decide to study Vietnamese culture don’t accidentally pick out Paris By Night to watch and think this is what we’re all about.
UR wrong kimberly. Just cause u are not asian u don`t have to us feel ashame.
I have mixed feelings. Some performances are really good & some are really corny!
The ignorant will always criticize without experience or research. Before you open your mouths, please understand the subject matter at hand. I went through the same metamorphosis with PBN as you Jennie. Keep up the good work!
ur right! When I was as a teen when the old ones came out,I thought what the heck. But u can`t judge a show by its looks! Also to haters, u might hated cause of u can`t UNDERSTAND vietnamese!!!Also they give MONEY! Haters u must learn vietnamese first and I am proud to be a vietnamese asian.
This is great. Glad u appreciate the show:)
I think what is happening is that the program is changing to appeal to its changing audience. Younger Vietnamese or Vietnamese-Americans, many who were born after the war, now make up a large fraction of PBN’s market. The modern audience wants the glitz, the sparkles, and the scantily clad women, and the fact that PBN continues to thrive suggests that this shift in content has been a success for the production company.
On another note, PBN, as a business, does not have the responsibility of representing the “Vietnamese community” in a particular light, or showing people “what we’re all about.” How should we be represented in the first place, and how can that be conveyed in a variety show?
If you have ever watched Sabado Gigante–a spanish-language variety show–you could come to the conclusion that there are two types of Mexican women: morbidly obese women in pink dresses wearing clown makeup, and prancing women with gigantic breast implants who wear bikinis indoors . Also, you could come to the conclusion that there are disproportionately high number midgets in the Mexican population. And that the number of trumpets outnumbers the Mexican populace by two-to-one. While I wish Mexican culture was just like this, I know that it isn’t, because it is just a ridiculous variety show.
PBN is entertainment and it will be whatever the audience pays it to be. The image of the Vietnamese community–however it is defined–is unlikely to be tarnished from the program’s content, which appears to be the concern among some individuals. Day-to-day interpersonal interactions and conduct within the community and politics has far, far greater bearing on a group’s image.
wait wait wait, how did you guys get:
“In addition, the theatrics of the show is tremendous. Sound, camera work, and staging is ridiculously amazing and professional. The show is visually stunning with wonderful costumes, scenery and lighting.”
to
“it is more sexualized, more westernized, more objectifying its better? I got nothing on any of those categories, but damn, if this is the way Vietnamese community wants to see things, count me out.”
let me break that down in outline form for you:
– theatrics (that’s men and woman)
– sound (that’s just quality)
– staging (again quality)
– professional (quality)
– visual stunning (this also includes the traditional ao dai’s all the seniors on the show wear. unless you’re watching a different paris by night than me)
– the scenery (again quality of show)
– lightening (again quality of show)
so from THAT above, you got
over sexualized (because grandma’s in ao dai’s are pretty damn sexy)
more westernized (because again grandma’s singing in ao dai is pretty damn westernized)
and more objectifying? (because ….ahh you get it!)
here’s the truthiness truth to it all
you SEE what you want to see
it says more about YOU talking about the sexuality/etc then it does about paris by night
for example, paris by night might have in one show:
– a tribute to an old singer
– a clip of an entrepreneur that made it big
– a young kid w/ lots of talent
– comedians making jokes
– tribute to a vietnamese anniversary of some sort
– half naked girls remaking a current pop song
and what you see is:
WAIT WHAT……..HOT HALF NAKED GIRLS????
WESTERNIZATION?
IS THAT RED I SEE??
COMMIES!!!
you see, we see what we want to see
it’s like tv, there are things you like on it, and there are things you don’t, skip the things you don’t like
but don’t generalize the whole thing, then you just look like a dummy
if you have a better point on paris by night being westernized, i’d actually like to hear about it w/ some actual points and arguments AND arguments for the other side too, like what about the tradition ao dai stuff. to say ‘it’s westernized, leave me out’ says nothing other than you were just watching the half naked girls parts.
and this is coming from someone who speaks vietnamese like a 10 year old kid. here’s what paris by night is to me, and i agree w/ jennie completely, it was a cheese fest growing up to music and cheesy outfits i didn’t get. but as time went on and you start putting on your own shows at VSA’s or viet community events, fan dances, etc etc, you realize, damn, they do a good job. and the hosts are genuine/not fake and funny. the comedians, the old grandma’s in ao dai. you see the whole show not just the cheesy parts.
but what i like it the most, more than anything is that it gives my parents, my grandparents, my aunt/uncles, etc joy to watch. maybe my grandpa DOES like the half naked girls dancing, hey why not?! he’s 80, that’s as much action he sees nowadays! lol. and so what if my parents can’t wait to get their hands on the new paris by night each month? and watch it over and over. it brings thousands of people joy and more importantly, above all else it gives vietnamese american kids this:
3 hours where your viet parents aren’t bitchin at you lol
wooops forgot to put info for above comment
– neaato
neaato@gmail.com
http://www.neaato.com
woops, forgot to write info for above comment:
– neaato