Vietnamese folk tale featured in Paris

A troupe from the Vietnam Cheo Theatre has staged the ancient Vietnamese folk story of Quan Am Thi Kinh performed in the style of traditional opera (cheo) in Paris, providing French friends with deeper understanding of a special genre of Vietnam’s traditional music.

The show was part of the 16th Festival of the Imaginary (Festival de l’imaginaire) held by the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and Ministry of Culture and Communication of France.

This was the first time the full story of Quan Am Thi Kinh has been performed with French subtitles, which were translated by Nguyen Thuy Tien, a member of the Vietnam Music Institute. Prof. Yves Defrance, a Vietnamese folk music researcher and also Director of CFMI of Rennes University 2, also joined hands in arranging the show from its beginnings in 2005.

Quan Am Thi Kinh is a story about a beautiful and talented woman called Thi Kinh, who was wrongfully accused of trying to kill her husband when cutting a stray hair of her husband’s beard growing in the wrong direction. Having no way to prove her innocence, she sought to renounce the world and seek release in religion. She thus disguised herself as a man and entered an order of Buddhist monks.

But once again, she, in the form of a handsome man, was thought to have a baby with a village girl named Thi Mau, and was expelled from the temple. She left with the baby but then could not sustain herself and the baby because she felt ill seriously and could not defeat the dead. Thi Kinh left a letter revealing her secret. Thanks to her endurance of indignity and her spirit of self-sacrifice, Thi Kinh entered into Nirvana and became Goddess of Mercy.

Sao Mai organisers impose strict rules this year

The organising board of the annual 2012 Sao Mai Diem Hen singing contest says that they will ban contestants from wearing skimpy or over provocative clothing and accessories.

The rules this year require that contestants have no tattoos, piercings on the face, arm or 'abnormal' dyed hair colours. They must also refrain from wearing revealing clothes or those with brand logos. Private bands and special instruments have also been banned unless approved by the board.

According to the organisers, the rules have been made stricter because of the large number of violations in the past. One of the more famous cases was that of Ha Linh in 2008. This contestant in the pop category, was disqualified for changing music's arrangement on the night of the performance.

According to the board, the rules are meant to eliminate those whose lifestyles are 'inconsistent with Vietnamese custom'. Also, those whose statements or actions are considered harmful to the show will not only be eliminated, but may even have to make compensation.

Even the audition rounds, to be held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, will have some stricter guidelines. Contestants who act in a disorderly way, such as trying to perform before their turn will be turned away.

Winner and runners-up from previous seasons in the pop category will be allowed to go straight to the live streaming round. If they do not wish to do so, the organising board can hand pick contestants from the auditions or from previous season to take these slots.

Sao Mai Singing Contest 2012 will officially broadcasted on VTV3 from June 24.

Province unveils plans to restore Cham tower
 
Authorities in Thua Thien-Hue Province have approved a plan to restore and renovate a Cham temple tower in the Phu Vang District's Phu Dien Commune.

The restoration work, which includes replacement of roof and walls of the glass structure built to protect the tower, coating the surface of the tower with an anti-erosion substance and a system to collect water around the tower, will cost nearly VND400 million (US$19,200).

The Cham tower ruins, located just 100m from the sea, were unearthed by titanium ore miners in April 2001.

The structure is the earliest built by the Cham people in the region to the north of Hai Van Pass.

Archeologists say it was built between the eighth and ninth centuries.

The Cham towers were built by kings of the Champa Kingdom that covered parts of southern and central Viet Nam from the seventh century to mid-19th century.

The Phu Dien Tower has four sealed entrances, and access is only available through the East entrance. The other three appear to be false.

Bricks used to make the structure are of uniform type with some carrying designs. No mortar has been found holding the structure together.

Unlike other Cham towers found in central Viet Nam, which were usually located on hilltops, the Phu Dien Tower was buried underground – probably, researchers think, by a seismic shock.

The restoration and renovation work is scheduled to be complete by the end of this year.

Hue’s Imperial Palace to get US$4.8 million facelift

“Ngo Mon” (The Gate of Noon), the main gate of the famous Hue Imperial Palace in central Thua Thien Hue province will get VND 100 billion (US$ 4.8 million) in funding for a new restoration project.

Phan Thanh Hai, deputy head of the Hue Old Capital Preservation Center, told Tuoitre on Monday that the Central Bank of Vietnam had agreed to sponsor its project to give the main gate of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site a total facelift.

Built in 1833 under the rule of the Nguyen Dynasty’s Minh Mang Emperor, it was used by the sovereign as an observation point for troop movements and ceremonies.

The gate is divided into two levels: the stone and brick fortress-like base structure, and the more elaborate, palace-like upper level.

While the ground level has five entrances, of which the centre one was always reserved for the monarch's use, the upper level consists of a grand pavilion, called the Lau Ngu Phung (Five-Phoenix Pavilion).

The pavilion is currently in very bad shape, and has to be reinforced with additional wooden columns.

Ngo Mon managed to survive the large-scale destruction during the Vietnamese War from 1950s-1970s, and has gone through several restorations, the most recent of which was in 1991-1992, under a US$ 100,000 project funded by the Japanese government, yet its degradation has only worsened recently.

Beauty of northwestern ladies in city

‘Mo Hoang’ (Wild Dreams) by artist Ha Hung Dung is on display at THINK Cafe, allowing visitors a chance to admire the grace of women of all ages in the northwest as well as explore the peaceful, tough and rustic life of the mountainous area’s locals.

On display are 10 paintings, depicting the beauty of ladies in the northwest regions. The exhibition is the result of the artist’s visit to Sapa, Lao Cai and Yen Bai provinces. Works are inspired from the stunning beauty of wild flowers, splendid landscapes and charming ladies in colorful brocade costumes.

“I love to paint women who are strong but also romantic. I love the way they are busy with daily life but their hearts are filled with dreams,” said Dung. Therefore, each work is the artist’s profound feelings emerging from the working activities of those women. Talented expression and skillful combination of colors with primitive sceneries, brocade clothes and sunburned and reddened cheeks make them appear vividly and innocently like dreams.

“My ideas are inspired from dreams, smoldering desires in my soul as real life is often too harsh for people to live truly within their characters. Some dreams are just hidden inside and people either are too scared to or unable to make them come true, so I put those dreams in my paintings,” said Dung, adding each work is each a wild dream.

Born in 1980 in the southern coastal city of Vung Tau, the artist graduated from HCMC Fine Arts University in 2005. He has had a few solo exhibitions and joined many group shows.

The show runs until March 29 at the cafe, 35 Ho Bieu Chanh Street in HCMC’s Phu Nhuan District.
 
Malaysian artists join in collective display

One of Malaysia's leading painters, Yusof Ghani, will showcase his latest works in a group exhibition at the Viet Nam National Museum of Fine Arts in the capital from March 24.

Working as a graphic artist from 1969 to 1979, Ghani's transition to fine arts started when he received a grant to study in Virginia, the US, in 1979.

He soon became interested in the work of famous American abstract expressionists such as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, eventually enrolling for classed in fine arts.

After receiving a master's degree from the Catholic University in Washington DC, he had his first solo exhibition at the city's prestigious Anton Gallery. Since then, he has had successful shows in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong, San Francisco, London, Abu Dhabi, New Delhi, Tokyo and Madrid.

The 62-year-old artist is currently a fine arts teacher at the University Technology MARA, in Malaysia.

Alongside Ghani, fellow countryman Zaim Durulaman will display paintings of Malaysian fishermen at the event.

A full time artist since 1990, Durulaman has participated in exhibitions in Brunei, China, Japan, Korea, Macedonia, Tunisia, Serbia and Dubai, his work part of collections at museums, corporates, banks and art lovers around the world.

Saturday's show in will also include works by five Vietnamese painters, including Nguyen Than, Vu Hoa, Ngo Hai Yen, Ngo Van Sac and Luu Tuyen.

Entitled Diem Den I (The Destination I), the exhibition will serve as a cultural exchange between regional artists.

It will take place at 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, from March 24 to April 1.

‘I’m Doctor Know-All’ on Youth Theater stage

‘I’m Doctor Know-All’ will be presented to Hanoi drama lovers at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Youth Theater, 11 Ngo Thi Nham Street.

Directed by Doctor Dieter Kirsch and Roland Kentschke of Viet Duc High School, the play focuses on the cupidity of a peasant named Krebs, who always dreams of a better life.

This is the second time Kirsch, a German author, director and foreign language educationalist, has come to Vietnam. In 2009, he and Viet Duc High School’s drama group won the hearts of the capital city fans with ‘The robbers’.

The play will be performed in German with Vietnamese subtitles. Complimentary tickets are available at Goethe Institute Hanoi at 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street.
 
S.Korean Star Bi Rain emcees VN-Korea friendship concert

South Korean star singer and actor Bi Rain Monday took part in a concert titled “Vuot Tren Am Thanh” (Above and Beyond the Sound) at the Hanoi Military Theater as an emcee, disappointing many fans who eagerly waited to see him perform on stage.

The concert was part of a series of cultural activities to celebrate the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and South Korea.

Together with actor Kim Ji Hoon, who is known in Vietnam for his role in the movie “Daughters-in-Law,” and emcee Hoang Ha from Vietnam, Bi, currently serving in the army, introduced the history of the Korean National Military Symphony Orchestra.

Bi pleased his local fans greatly by saying “Hello, I’m Jong Ji Hoon (his real name)!” in Vietnamese.

At the concert, the Korean National Military Symphony Orchestra performed the two countries’ national anthems.

R ‘n’ B singer and songwriter Park Hyo Shin, who is most well known for composing soundtracks in hit dramas like “I'm Sorry, I Love You” (2005) and “Athena” (2010), took to the stage with his performance of “You Raise Me Up" and "My Way."

Another concert will be held at the Hanoi Opera House on March 21. Bi Rain is also expected to have an interaction session with students at the Military Culture and Arts University based in the capital one day after.

On March 17, Bi Rain and his comrades in military uniform passed through the main gate of Hanoi’s Noi Bai airport where huge crowds of local fans had been waiting to see him in person.