Three and one-half years ago, Clapham, then 23, startled Vietnamese audiences with her mastery of ancient Vietnamese tuồng and chèo songs, dance and acting.  In this midst of her sudden success, including a nationally broadcast TV show, Clapham completely disappeared from the music scene, leaving people wondering where she had gone.

Now Clapham, known here also by her Vietnamese name ‘Hoang Lan,’ has returned to release her debut album “The Awakening.” On June 26, she performed at the Hanoi Opera House, demonstrating an exciting mixture of ancient and modern sounds, costumes, music and dance. Her repertoire now also includes songs from the southern cải lương operetta tradition. 

She describes her album as “what I always set out to create, a perfect fusion of contemporary pop music and ancient Asian traditions. I’ve realized a dream.”

Clapham showcased 12 of her songs, performed with Chi Huong’s band, and she demonstrated her mastery of drum movement, fan movements, flag and sword movements. All of these were delivered with a powerful, mellifluous voice.