Notre Dame opera to open in HCM City

Opera Notre Dame De Paris written by Huy Tien will premiere at the HCM City Conservatory on January 12 and 13.

The opera is based on the Hunchback of Notre Dame by French novelist Victor Hugo, but contains many changes to be contemporary.

It combines jazz, blue, and vpop to "turn into a poem to remind audience of the permanent message ‘only love is eternal'," Tien said in a release.

Popular singer Tran Hieu will narrate the story. Nguyen Thi Nhung will be on the flute, Vu Hong Anh on the cello, Chau Dang Khoa on the guitar, Ha Ngoc Cam on the drums, Dieu Ly on the violin, and Vu Huy Tien on the piano.

The 90-minute show will be directed by Phan Dien.

"This version of Notre Dame De Paris will be a new artistic milestone," Dien said.

Tickets priced at VND400,000, are available at the conservatory, 112 Nguyen Du Street, District 1.

Royal ceremony revived in Hue

The traditional royal ceremonies that took place during the Nguyen Dynasty have been re-introduced for Tourism Week in Hue Citadel from December 24-31.

The ceremony "The return of the queen" is held from 9am to 9:30am, and features the "queen" and her escorts travelling through the pathways of Truong Lang in the Forbidden City. The queen, in the traditional golden dress, will lead the group, with her maids, guards and the rest of the court following.

The ceremony has created a resemblance of the old glory of the palace with both citizens and tourists in attendance. Still, there was an inevitable modern twist, with many young people taking pictures with their cameras and mobile devices.

Hang Trong book claims top prize

A research book by scholar Phan Ngoc Khue on Hang Trong paintings, has won the first prize among 64 folk art research projects this year.

The book includes researched stories, photos and captions of the worship and decorative paintings by artists who resided mainly in the Hang Non and Hang Trong streets in Ha Noi's Old Quarter. The book identifies the role of the painting genre, which dates back to 400 years ago, in the creation and development of Vietnamese folk paintings.

The annual award was given by the Viet Nam Folk Art Association, which has also awarded "Honorary Folk Artisan" titles to eight artists who practise and teach traditional instruments of the Muong group, the then folk songs of the Tay group, xam singing (ballads by beggars) and traditional embroidery. .

Vietnamese puppetry shows feature Andersen tales

A perfect combination of Vietnamese puppetry and Andersen fairy tales has made a deep impression on French audiences.

During performances in France from December 26-30, Vietnamese local puppet artists depicted characters from Andersen fairy tales at the Claude Lévi-Strauss theatre on the campus of Paris-based Quai Branly Museum.

The event was part of celebrations of the 40th anniversary of Vietnam-France diplomatic ties and the 2014 Vietnam Year in France.

Vietnamese artists performed “Chú lính chì dũng cảm” (The Steadfast Tin Soldier), “Vịt con xấu xí” (The Ugly Duckling), and “Nàng tiên cá” (Little Mermaid) fairy tales of Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen.

The puppet show was the result of a three-year art cooperation project between the Vietnam Water Puppetry Theatre and the France Interarts Riviera SA.

Director of France Interarts Riviera SA, Jean-Luc Larguier, who first took Vietnamese water puppetry abroad in 1980, said overseas performances have gave a boost to the development of Vietnam traditional puppetry art.

Other puppet shows are set to be on stage in France and other European countries in 2014 and 2015, he added.

Famous paintings recognized as national treasure

“Four Masters” of Vietnamese modern art and 34 objects with historical and artistic value have just been recognized as the national treasures.

Accordingly, the recognized works include Hai thieu nu va em be (Two girls and a child) by To Ngoc Van, Em Thuy (Little sister Thuy) by Tran Van Can, Ket nap Dang o Dien Bien Phu (Joining the Communist Party at Dien Bien Phu) by Nguyen Sang, and Vuon xuan Trung Nam Bac (Spring Garden in the Central, South and North) by Nguyen Gia Tri.

Samba melody to attend in Hue Festival 2014

Sururu Na Roda music band from Brazil will attend in Hue Festival 2014 in other to  perform Brazilian Samba melody to Vietnam audiences, announced by the organizers of Hue Festival.

This is the first time that Sururu Na Roda music band will perform in Vietnam, is expected to attract Vietnamese audiences with many special music items during the event.

Accordingly, outstanding art performance delegations of more than 30 countries and territories around the world will join in performance in Hue Festival 2014 under theme ‘Cultural Heritage with Integration and Development’.

Hue Festival 2014 will take place from December 2013 to April 20, 2014.

Tran Trong Nghia wins first prize of ‘Golden Voice of VOH’ contest

Radio the Voice of Ho Chi Minh City in collaboration with Ho Chi Minh City Television organized final rankings round and award ceremony for six best contestants of ‘Golden Voice of VOH’ contest on December 29.

After five months from launching, the contest attracted 410 contestants across country.

The organized selected six outstanding contestants to join in the semi-finals, including Cao Huy The from Tien Giang province, Nguyen Huynh Lien from Binh Thuan province, Pham Ngoc Mai from Bac Lieu province, Tran Trong Nghia from Quang Ngai, Dang Nhat Tan and Nguyen Thi Kim Thu from Dong Nai.

After performing successfully two songs ‘Me Toi’ (My mom) and ‘Me’ (Mom), contestant Tran Trong Nghia from College of Culture and Arts of HCMC  excellently grabbed the first prize of this year’s contest.

The second prize went to Cao Huy The, meanwhile, the third prize belonged to Pham Thi Ngoc Mai.

Nguyen Huynh Lien, Dang Nhat tan and Nguyen Thi Kim Thu shared the fourth prizes

Besides that, the organizers also offered consolation prizes for contestants, including contestant who best performed songs about President Ho Chi Minh and songs about the islands of Vietnam, youngest contestants who performed most successfully in the contest and others.

The annual ‘Golden Voice of VOH’ contest is organized with the aim to detect music talents across the country.