An art performance taking place in front of the royal citadel during the previous Hue Festival.
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Aiming to uphold traditional values and showcase modernity, Hue Festival 2018 will focus on events in which people can take part in, according to Nguyen Dung, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee. “Like its previous nine editions, the biennial festival will serve as the venue for cultural exchanges among nations with the participation of many art troupes from around the world,” he said at the press briefing.
The festival will be themed “Cultural Heritage with Integration and Development: Hue - One Destination, Five World Heritages”. It offers a chance for exchanges among representative art genres from countries such as China, Japan, Thailand, Mongolia, Russia, Denmark, Peru, Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Chile, Australia and Morocco.
The festival will make full use of traditional cultural spaces. The royal citadel is the event’s major hub with six stages showcasing artistic programmes by domestic and international performers.
Venues at the An Dinh Palace, Ngo Mon Square, Quoc Hoc Square and around the city and neighbouring districts will also stage performances, parades and street shows. “All the events are expected to bring an appealing atmosphere to Hue Festival,” said Dung.
The festival will promote Vietnam’s culture and art through UNESCO-recognised heritage such as the Complex of Hue Monuments, royal court music, woodblocks, the imperial archives of the Nguyen Dynasty and poetry on Hue royal architecture (2016).
The festival combines traditional culture, art and tourism with a community orientation, which will contribute to promoting local socio-economic development.
As Hue served as the imperial city under the Nguyen Dynasty (1802 - 1945), the festival will reenact royal celebrations and events such as Royal Night, Orient Legends and the Nam Giao ritual.
In addition, many side events will be held, such as the Hue Science Festival (organised by the Hue College of Medicine and Pharmacy), International Gastronomy Fair, beer carnival, International Trade Fair, Splendid Taste of Ancient Village in Phuoc Tich, traditional boat race on Huong (Perfume) River, kite festival, Tam Giang Lagoon Fantasy and Hue Poetry Festival.
Exhibitions taking different themes include ‘the poetry on Hue royal architectural works inscribed on truc chi (bamboo pulp) paper’, ‘colours of Bat Trang pottery’, ‘orchids and bonsai’, ‘old car exhibition’ and ‘cultural heritage with integration and development’.
Various sight-seeing tours offer more fantastic journeys to discover local attractions such as Lang Co beach and Tam Giang Lagoon. The Hue imperial citadel relic was ranked second among the top tourism attractions of Vietnam in 2017.
Director of the Hue Relics Conservation Centre Phan Thanh Hai said this is the second year in a row the Hue Imperial Citadel has received the title. The most visited tourist site is Thang Long Imperial Citadel in Hanoi.
Hue Festival has taken place every two years starting from 2000, bringing together excellent arts companies with unique performances from across the world.
