HCMCITY — A choir concert bringing together more than 1,000 performers will be held here to welcome the 11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Viet Nam that opens in Ha Noi next Tuesday.
The event, Nhung Bai Ca Dang Dang (Songs offered to the Party), will feature more than 1,000 amateur and professional performers from 11 different universities around the city.
The choir will perform famous works of veteran composers including Do Nhuan, Huy Du, Vu Dinh An and Pham Minh Tuan. The patriotic songs praise the country, the Party and President Ho Chi Minh.
A series of contemporary dances will be choreographed to support the choir on stage, said the event's art director Hoang Diep.
The festival will open at 8pm next Monday at the city's Opera House. It will be aired live on the Ho Chi Minh Radio and Ho Chi Minh Television's HTV9 channel.
Later the choir will perform for students at the city's National University and Economics University.
Dong Thap Province to welcome in Tet with art shows, festivals
DONG THAP — Cao Lanh Town in the Mekong Delta Province of Dong Thap is preparing to usher in the Lunar New Year early next month with five days of art performances and other events.
Hoi ngo tren dat sen hong (Meet in the land of the pink lotus), to be organised by the local Culture Centre and Say Cheese Event and Media Company and opening on February 2, will spotlight the culture of Dong Thap Muoi (Plain of Reeds).
Flower-shaped coloured lanterns will light up the city's Van Mieu Park where ornamental creatures will also be on display.
Visitors will also have the chance to see cultural symbols from around the country: there will be models of Ha Noi's Khue Van Cac Pavilion, considered a symbol of literature, and Tortoise Tower; terraced fields from the misty north-west; the moss-grown Cham Tower in the central region; stilt houses from the Central Highlands; and the floating markets of the Mekong Delta.
Costumes worn by the country's 54 minorities will be on show.
Visitors can take part in traditional games and game shows based on traditional culture, the Viet Nam – My Fatherland painting competition for children, a calligraphy contest, and a poetry recitation contest.
There will be fights between nightingales and cocks.
A beauty contest for cats will be the highlight of a festival meant to welcome Tan Mao, or the Year of the Cat.
Hundreds join Ha Noi High School English Festival
HA NOI — Hundreds of students plan to attend the final round of the Ha Noi High School English Festival on Sunday, organised by the Department of Education and Training and Apollo English.
Nineteen outstanding performances that include English pronunciations, singing, dancing and aerobics will be conducted by the winners selected from the previous two rounds in December.
There are two first prizes worth VND4 million (US$200) each and three second place prizes each VND3 million ($150) among others, said organisers, adding that two special awards will be given to the most devoted schools.
The festival, which started last November, has attracted hundreds of students from 16 high schools in the capital.
The final round will take place at the Youth Theatre at No11 Ngo Thi Nham Street, Ha Noi. — VNS