Hue Festival 2014: A gathering place of ancient capital cities

In just a few days, Hue Festival 2014 with the theme "Cultural heritage with integration and development" is about to open. Taking place from April 12 to April 20, the Festival is a gathering place of ancient capital cities and typical cultural regions of Vietnam and the world.

Up to now, 68 troupes and art groups from 38 countries in all 5 continents have registered to participate in Hue Festival 2014. Hue Festival 2014 is also a special cultural activity within the framework of the East Asia - Latin America cultural exchange forum organized by the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During the Hue Festival 2014, the ASEAN +3 Ministers in charge of Culture and Arts Conference also took place in Hue at the request of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Vietnam.

Mr. Ngo Hoa, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Head of the Organizing Committee of Hue Festival 2014 said: This is the 8th Festival held in Thua Thien - Hue. It is gratifying that the number of participating delegations and countries is increasing. This proves that Hue Festival is increasingly attractive, attracting friends from near and far; it is a place where Hue culture, Vietnamese culture and friends from all over the world "converge and shine", as the theme has been set out "Cultural heritage with integration and development". The festival also contributes to creating momentum to promote the socio-economic development of the province.

In 2014, Hue Festival accompanied the events: 115th anniversary of Dong Ba market, 115th anniversary of Truong Tien bridge and 120th anniversary of Hue Central Hospital - the first "western medicine" hospital in Vietnam. Therefore, the closing night will be a complete combination of the spaces of these 3 locations; in which, Trang Tien bridge is the main stage with the Carabosse fire installation art. More uniquely, on Truong Tien bridge there is an art photo exhibition of 54 Vietnamese ethnic groups by artist Sebastienne Laval, a new feature at Hue Festival 2014.

Also at Hue Festival 2014, for the first time, the province organized a 15-minute high-altitude fireworks display at the opening and closing ceremonies. Hue Festival 2014 will expand the performance space and festival space, with the goal of bringing the Festival to the community. The community and humanity are emphasized as the overall highlights of the 8th Hue Festival. The opening ceremony is held at Ngo Mon Square, facing the Ky Dai, with modern rhythms and choreography performed on the background of cultural heritages recognized by the world but still bearing the traditional culture, heritage and cultural features of Hue.

The French Republic continues to be the main partner of Hue Festival 2014, with the participation of Poitou - Charentes Region in an effort to strengthen coordination in implementing cooperation projects in the fields of culture and tourism committed by Ms. Ségolène Royal - President of the Poitou - Charentes Regional Council (France). Poitou - Charentes Region representing France has always been the main partner of Hue Festival from the first time in 2000 to Hue Festival 2014. In addition, Poitou - Charentes Region also supports Thua Thien - Hue in improving the quality of human resources in the fields of tourism, enhancing heritage values, cultural management and international cooperation management; supporting the development of eco-tourism, especially upgrading traditional Hue housing to develop homestays...

International art troupes bring to Hue Festival 2014 many art forms; including, for the first time, the participation of many world-class art troupes such as Sururu Na Roda band (Brazil), Bati-holic drum troupe (Japan), Asayel folk dance troupe (Palestine)... At Hue Festival 2014, there will be an exchange between Japanese royal court music and Hue royal court music (Vietnamese royal court music) through the song "Rinyu hakkyoku" which will be introduced by Nantogakuso royal court music troupe, through Yokohama Noh Theater (Japan).

Nantogakuso music is a traditional music form, inherited through history along with rituals in Shinto shrines or temples in Japan. Recently, Nantogakuso music group has had many tours and expanded its musical activities to the world. In 2012, the head of Nantogakuso music group - artist Kasagi Kanichi received the "Japan Art Institute Award" - a prestigious award in the Japanese art world.

With the stage name "Long Messenger", Benjamin Schoos - a talented artist, a Belgian music icon came to Vietnam to attend Hue Festival 2014. As the lead singer of the band Miam Monster Miam, and also a producer, musician, and multi-instrumentalist, Benjamin Schoos has created a series of fresh, vibrant compositions, filled with melodies and French romantic pop.

Benjamin has also created an extremely rich FM pop rhythm, a multi-colored sound picture on the background of melodious, flashy, soaring melodies with "soft rock" music based on the best soundtracks of French cinema. The Asayel - Palestine folk dance troupe, with performances that fully depict the daily life of the Palestinian people, the Asayel folk dance troupe will help the audience discover the country of Palestine right on the stages of Hue Festival 2014...

Within the framework of Hue Festival 2014, there will also be special activities, art programs and festivals such as: Royal Festival, Folk Festival; Xa Tac Ceremony, Giao Ceremony; Royal Night; Ao Dai Festival; Street Performances; programs "Oriental Night", "Vietnamese Sounds", "Trinh Cong Son Music"; Royal Court Music, Dance, Hue Songs, Thua Thien - Hue Folk Songs, folk songs, folk music, folk dances, traditional costumes of ethnic groups in Thua Thien Hue; Exhibitions, Seminars, International Trade Fairs, Tourism Promotion Cooperation Exchanges...

Expanding and paving Dong Da Street to serve Hue Festival 2014. Photo: Quoc Viet

The ancient space of the Imperial City (Royal Palace) is an advantage for the Hue Monuments Conservation Center to organize nightly cultural programs such as the exhibition of paintings and installation art with the theme "Tay Hien"; the exhibition "3-region art space"; "Bat Trang cultural space, Thai Y Duong space"; "Exhibition of Imperial Seals and Treasures, about Hue royal cuisine". The nights of April 15 and 19 have the program "Royal Palace Night", the first tour tickets have been sold out.

Hue Festival 2014 continues to affirm its brand with the typical values ​​of Vietnam's Festival City. If in Hue Festival 2000, there were only 1,000 artists and actors from four countries participating, by 2014 it will gather high-quality art programs of 68 professional art troupes from 38 countries and territories on five continents with about 1,400 artists and actors participating. In the first Hue Festival, there were about 50,000 visitors to Hue, while Hue Festival 2012 attracted more than two million people to participate in activities, more than 180,000 tourists, including more than 80,000 international visitors.

Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Thua Thien - Hue province Phan Tien Dung said: It is estimated that at the Hue Festival 2014, there will be 200,000 visitors to Hue, half of which will be international visitors. The Hotel Association of Thua Thien - Hue province has prepared 526 accommodation establishments, with more than 10,000 bedrooms to serve.

There are 11 hotels with accommodation from 3 to 5 stars in the area that have registered to sponsor nearly 1,000 bedrooms, with a total value of 1 billion VND for Hue Festival 2014. The Provincial Hotel Association actively accompanies Hue Festival 2014 by mobilizing and strictly managing accommodation establishments, resolutely not increasing room rates during Hue Festival 2014, contributing significantly to the success of festivals and major events, satisfying tourists to Hue.

At Hue Festival Center, No. 17, Le Loi Street, Hue City, the Hue Festival 2014 Press Center has been put into operation to serve press reporters and install hotlines for live broadcasting of festival events, ensuring smooth communication during the Festival. This is the result of cooperation between the Post and Telecommunications Group and Hue Festival Center; in which VNPT is the gold sponsor for Hue Festival in the field of telecommunications and information technology, with a sponsorship amount of 2 billion VND. Currently, there are nearly 600 domestic and international reporters registered to work at Hue Festival 2014.

These days, more than 350 young volunteers of Thua Thien - Hue Provincial Youth Union are trained in diplomatic reception skills, Hue culture, and are guided to familiarize themselves with the areas to be ready to serve art troupes and international tourists. Through the festival, the volunteers will be cultural ambassadors to convey Hue culture and Vietnamese culture to international friends during Hue Festival 2014, as the festival's theme has been set "Cultural heritage with integration and development", said Secretary of Thua Thien - Hue Provincial Youth Union Nguyen Chi Quang.

According to Tintuc