Thua Thien-Hue (VNA) – A number of art performances by both domestic and foreign artists were organised at different stages of the ongoing Hue Festival in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on May 1, making strong impressions on locals and visitors🌳.

At Dien Tho palace, performances of Vietnamese traditional music, including “nha nhac” (royal court music) – a UNESCO-recognised world intangible heritage, ca tru (ceremonial singing), and bai choi performances(a traditional Vietnamese game combining folklore singing and picks from a deck of card), attracted a lot of audiences. Visitors to the festival were also impressed by programmes conducted by five art troupes from France, especially a street parade of a 7.5m-high puppet of the troupe L’Homme Debout. Meanwhile, artists from Russia entertained visitors with the country’s folk songs at the Kien Trung palace stage. Earlier on April 30, an ao dai (traditional long dress) festival, themed “Where the legend begins”, took place at the Bia Quoc Hoc stage, drawing thousands of visitors. More than 10 designers from the three northern, central and southern regions of Vietnam introduced to audience their excellent collections. Within the framework of the event, the provincial authorities decided to use cyclos to serve tourists. According to the local Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the locality welcomed 1.1 million tourist arrivals in the first four months of 2016, up 12.6 percent year-on-year, of which 397,770 are foreigners. It earned more than 1 trillion VND (45 million USD) from tourism services in the period.-VNA