Second International Puppetry Festival opens in Hanoi; First ceramic and porcelain festival kicks off; Japan – Vietnam Day in Ho Chi Minh City; Famous Finnish writer’s book introduced in Vietnam
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Second International Puppetry Festival opens in Hanoi
The second International Puppetry Festival was held at the Hanoi Opera House on September 4, attracting the participation of 17 Vietnamese and foreign art troupes.
The event saw various performances by 12 international art troupes and five Vietnamese puppetry troupes, featuring the cultural identities of different regions.
Deputy head of the Performing Arts Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vuong Duy Bien, who is also head of the festival’s organising board, said the event was a special gift to celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi.
During the festival, which will last until September 9, Vietnamese and foreign artists will perform at many venues, including the Vietnam Puppetry Theatre, the Military Theatre, the Kim Ma popular opera theatre and Hong Ha theatre.
Audiences will have the chance to see different kinds of puppetry, including water puppetry, and hand, mask and stick puppetry.
Vietnam spotlighted at Shanghai Expo
“The Vietnam National Day” started at the Shanghai Expo China 2010 on September 2.
Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh, Vietnamese Ambassador Doan Manh Giao and Deputy Head of the China National Tourism Administration Du Ri Li along with more than 200 representatives from offices, organisation and enterprises from China and Vietnam attended the event.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Minister Anh stressed that the event is of special significance as it is being organised on the occasion of the 65 th anniversary of Vietnam’s National Day (September 2), the Vietnam-China Friendship Year and 60 th anniversary of Vietnam-China diplomatic ties.
2010 is an important year to Vietnam as the country will celebrate the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi while assuming the ASEAN Chair. Thus, the country wishes to work with all neighbouring countries and other partners for peace, stability, cooperation and development of Asia and the world, he said.
For his part, Du Ri Li spoke highly of Vietnam ’s contributions to the Shanghai Expo. He said Vietnam and China are creating new opportunities after 60 years of establishing diplomatic ties, adding that cooperation in politics, economics, science-technology and culture is developing fruitfully thanks to the special attention of the two countries’ leaders, he said.
Within the framework of the event, Vietnamese artists staged a special performance highlighting the country’s traditional culture. Nearly 300 Vietnamese and Chinese enterprises also attended a forum on investment cooperation jointly held by Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Shanghai Trade Promotion Committee.
First ceramic and porcelain festival kicks off
With the theme “Vietnam porcelain – traditional, identity and development” the country’s first Ceramic and Porcelain Festival kicked off in the southern province of Binh Duong on September 2.
The festival attracted participation of 19 trade villages and 50 ceramic enterprises nationwide, aiming at honoring the traditional ceramic industry as part of the activities to celebrate the capital’s millennial anniversary.
This is an opportunity to businesses introduce their products as well as perform their talent.
Beside a fine arts exhibition with 600 stalls, the festival also introduces ten porcelain products, which registered to take part the country’s Guinness porcelain products.
The event was jointly held by the Binh Duong Province People’s Committee and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
The festival will wrap up on September 9.
Japan – Vietnam Day in Ho Chi Minh City
Japan – Vietnam Day will be held on September 12 at the Youth’s Cultural House at 4 Pham Ngoc Thach Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
In the hall, Ikebana – a Japanese unique Art of flower arrangement will be introduced by famous professor Prof. Yasuhito Sasaki from the Japanese Flower Arrangement. This is a rare opportunity for flower lovers to do the art under the guidance of Pro. Yasuhito Sasaki. Japanese Drama Play and Kendo will be performed.
A talk show with Vietnamese Artists about who did go to Japan like Excellent actor Thanh Loc, film director Nguyen Quang Dung, musician Duc Tri, vision artist Nhu Huy, singer Hien Thuc.
The performance of Costume roleplay – wearing strange clothes of characters in stories – would be very attractive to teens as it is displayed by Vietnamese teenagers
In the entrance, visitors can play Japanese traditional games and enjoy Japanese food like Takoyaki. Origami, Japan’s famous art of paper folding, will be guided meanwhile book lovers can read Japanese picture books (E-hon) and “Coupii Big Art” paintings.
The entrance is gratis. The Consulate General of Japan in Ho Chi Minh City hosts the event to strengthen cultural exchange and understanding between the two countries.
Famous Finnish writer’s book introduced in Vietnam
A picture book entitled “Magic Hat” written by the well-known Finnish writer and illustrator Tove Jansson was published in Vietnam on September 4.
The book was introduced at a ceremony held by the Nhi Dong (Children’s) Publishing House, the Finnish Embassy in Vietnam and the National Library.
The book was translated into Vietnamese by Vo Xuan Que and illustrated by painter Luong Xuan Doan. The book has already been translated into 40 foreign languages and welcomed by children across from the world.
This was the first Finnish picture book to be published in Vietnam. The book tells stories about the Mumi valley where people and animals live in harmony with the nature. The images of the characters in Mumi appear on many cultural products and become one of the most recognised trademarks in Finland.
Exhibition commemorates Mexican Independence Day
A photography exhibition entitled “Guanajuato-Human Cultural Heritage City” will be held at 31A Van Mieu Street, Hanoi on September 6-12.
The event is organised by the Mexican embassy in Vietnam in coordination with the Maison des Arts.
It commemorates the 200th anniversary of Independence Day and the 100th celebration of the Mexican Revolution.
On display will be photos of old Guanajuato city taken by Mexican photographer Pedro Vazqueznieto.
The city has some similarities with Hanoi capital: both of them comprise many cultures and all are in the process of conservation to maintain their ancient history.
Photography exhibition on Vietnam held in France
A photography exhibition is being held in Gacily, France, focusing on Vietnam and its people.
On the display are photographs taken by 13 Vietnamese artists featuring the beauty of Vietnam’s coastal areas and the close relationship between local residents and the water environment.
Visitors to the exhibition can imagine the daily life of Vietnamese fishermen and the happiness of children playing in the rain.
The event, which has drawn a large number of French visitors, will last until September 30.
Second Then and Tinh festival opens in Lai Chau
More than 70 artists from districts in the northern province of Lai Chau gathered for a second festival on Then singing and playing Tinh instruments on September 2-3.
The Deputy Director of Lai Chau province’s department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Nguyen Van Dien, said that the event is a “traditional cultural treat” from the northern mountainous provinces.
However, compared to the previous festival, the event missed the presence of former musicians and the old melodies from traditional festivals.
The organising committee awarded the 20 best performances with first prizes, all belonging to Phong Tho district.
Best thousand wishes to be sent to Hanoi
The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation in Vietnam (HSBC) on August 30 launched a programme to collect a thousand best wishes to mark the 1000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi.
For each chosen wish, HSBC will donate 500,000 VND to a scholarship fund of Tuoi Tre Newspaper. By the end of the project, a total of 500 million VND will be granted to 100 disadvantaged students to cover their living and study expenses.
Ton That Anh Vu, a senior officer of HSBC, said that HSBC would like to convey Vietnamese citizens’ best wishes for prosperity and development on the millennial birthday of the capital city, and the program would bring about practical benefits in training young generations.
The event will last until September 24. All Vietnamese citizens who wish to join the program can visit the website http://www.ngandieuuoc.com/ or send email to hsbc@ngandieuuoc.com for registration.
Vietnam joins Beijing charity sale
The Vietnamese pavilion, with a number of specialties such as coffee on show at an international charity sale in Beijing , China , was crowded with visitors and customers.
The event, the second of its kind so far, was opened on September 4, calling for “Love without border and financial assistance for the disabled”.
The charity event, drawing over 60 agencies of foreign diplomatic corps and international organisations in China, aimed to raise fund for the construction of community-based functional rehabilitation centres and improve life quality, such as the capacity of community integration, for the disabled in Gansu and He Bei provinces, which were hardest hit by recent huge mudslides.
A deputy president of the Chinese Federation of the Disabled, Tang Xiao Quan, expressed thanks to the foreign diplomatic corps and foreign business circles for their thoughtfulness and assistance to Chinese disabled people.
The latest survey showed that China was home to some 83 million disabled people, mostly in the countryside.
Hanoi sparkles with fireworks on National Day
A firework display and an open-air concert brightened the capital city of Hanoi where President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam 65 years ago on Sept.2.
Ten of thousands of people flocked to Hoan Kiem (Restored Sword) Lake in the heart of the capital city to enjoy the fireworks which were set off at 9:00pm and also broadcast live on VTV.
The open-air concert that was performed by 400 singers and dancers, martial artists, and pupils, also took place on the bank of Hoan Kiem Lake .
The artistic performance began with a Lion dance, followed by a demonstration of VOVINAM (Vietnamese marital art), and songs about the Vietnamese people and the country.
The audience also enjoyed video clips featuring Hanoi ’s history, from the Dinh Dynasty (968-980) to the day when President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence (September 2, 1945).
Firework displays and concert were also held in other locations across the country to mark National Day.
Porcelain festival marks capital’s birthday
Two hundred photos are on display at a fine arts exhibition opened in the southern province of Binh Duong on Sept. 1.
The exhibition is part of the Vietnam-Binh Duong Porcelain Festival 2010, which aims to mark the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi.
The eight-day festival entitled, “Vietnam porcelain – traditions, identity and development” aims to honour porcelain craft villages and porcelain craftsmen.
The festival that will wrap up on Sept. 9 includes a porcelain exhibition-cum-fair, an exhibition on Binh Duong’s socio-economic achievements over 35 years of construction and development and a seminar on Vietnam’s porcelain during the nationalisation and modernisation process.
An exhibition of Vietnam’s guinness porcelain products will be held together with a display of special dishes of southeastern provinces during the festival.
PV
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