People's Artist Dinh Quang.

HA NOI (VNS)  — Dinh Quang, founder of Vietnamese theatre and mentor to many famous artists, died at 87.

"He's a prestigious artist who's well-known in theatre at home and abroad," said Le Chuc, vice director of Viet Nam Association of Performing Artists.

Dinh Quang, who besides a strong career as writer for many plays, also served as vice minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism from 1984 to 1993, was born in 1928 in Ha Noi. He studied theatre in Beijing and obtained a PhD degree at the Humboldt University of Berlin.

Many of the students Quang taught are now People's Artists, such as Trong Khoi, The Anh and Doan Chau.

Quang, first principal of the Ha Noi Academy of Theatre and Cinema, was an ideologist and cultural activist who wrote many books on arts and culture. He published dramas, poems, short stories and screenplays. In 2007, he received the Ho Chi Minh award in literature and arts. — VNS