Vietnamese culture promoted in Switzerland

The Overseas Vietnamese Association in Switzerland organized a Vietnam culture night in Maison de Quartier de la Jonction, Geneva on September 20, attracting a large number of international friends and Overseas Vietnamese (OVs).

A series of activities were held, including a traditional musical instrument performance, fashion show, martial art performance,art performance and stalls serving Vietnamese cuisine.

In particular, múa sạp (Bamboo dance) reflecting agricultural lives of Vietnamese people left a good impression on audiences. Many foreigners also participated in the dance.

Japan film festival to delight Vietnamese audiences

Eight Japanese films, themed ‘Passion’, will be shown in three major Vietnamese cities at the 2014 Japanese Film Festival, which runs from October 10 to November 16.

‘One Million Yen Girl’, ‘Feel the Wind’, ‘Bushido Sixteen’, ‘Shodo Girls!!’, ‘In His Chart’, ‘Peak –The Rescuers’, ‘Tomorrow’s Joe’, ‘Robo-G’, will be screened in Hanoi, Da Nang and Vung Tau.

Of the films, ‘Robo-G’ (director Shinobu Yaguchi/2012) will be selected to open this year’s festival. The film, featuring comical scientists and strange robot, has been screened in some cities in Vietnam and got many laughs and a favourable reception.

All films will be screened with both English and Vietnamese sub-titles.

Free tickets for the screenings can be collected from September 27 at the Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam, at 27 Quang Trung, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi; Dien Bien Cinema at 32 Dien Bien, in Da Nang cities and at Le Do cinema in Vung Tau.

Motorcycle ride fights cancer

A group of eight motorcyclists from Australia plus several from other countries will join a 200km journey in Russian-made Ural sidecars from Ha Noi to Pu Luong nature reserve in Thanh Hoa Province on September 28.

The tour operator, Glenn Phillips, said yesterday that the journey, the 2014 Distinguished Gentleman's Ride, was being held to raise funds for  prostate cancer research.

Participants hope to raisen US$1 million, including some of it donated themselves. Each sponsor is expected to contribute US$200 to the ride.

Participants can visit www.gentlemansride.com/rider/glennoi or www.gentlemansride.com to learn more.

Hotel holds fundraising gala

The New World Sai Gon Hotel will marks its 20 anniversary on October 8 with a gala dinner of "giving back to the community", raising funds for the Christina Noble Children's Foundation.

The event will begin with cocktails and champagne, canapes and gourmet hors d'oeuvres before the five-course dinner prepared by three of the New World's top executive chefs, Richard Hilton from New World Beijing Hotel, Ivan Chieregatti from New World Makati Hotel and Saju Rajappan from New World Sai Gon Hotel.

The dinner will also feature entertainment including magic, live acoustic music, and a DJ. A live auction will be held to raise money for the charity.

Tickets are VND4.2 million (US$ 200) per person, including a gift voucher for a one-night stay at the Residence Club Deluxe Room, with breakfast for two.

All proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Christina Noble Children's Foundation, in support of the city's underprivileged and disabled children.

Photo book marks Liberation Day

Photographer Huu Nen has released a photo book to celebrate the 60th Liberation Day for Ha Noi on October 10.

As a member of the International Federation of Photographic Art, Nen has featured Ha Noi for almost 60 years.

The book, entitled Ha Noi Capital, consists of 178 photos depicting the daily work and life of different stratas of people and their beauty.

"Each photo is described in Vietnamese and English. I'd like foreign readers to learn more about Ha Noi, which is now more than 1000 years old," Nen said.

VN theatre stages Brecht play

Modern drama: Caucasian Chalk Circle is being staged at the Viet Nam Youth Theatre for the first time. — Photo courtesy of Goethe Institute Standing in the middle of a Caucasian chalk circle, two women claim a boy to be their own offspring and are firmly gripping each of the boy'shands as a judge looks on .

Actors of the Viet Nam Youth Theatre performed this excerpt from Caucasian Chalk Circle, the renowned work of the late German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956), at a recent press conference on the cultural co-operation project between the theatre and Goethe  Institute in the capital city.

Caucasian Chalk Circle will be performed for the first time at the Viet Nam Youth Theatre under this project. The excerpt at the press conference features a trial over the right to keep the child, and the ending was not shown.

The play narrates the story of a servant who sacrifices her love for a soldier to rescue a baby boy, and in the process, she becomes a better mother to the boy than his real parents, who are wealthy.

Truong Nhuan, the theatre director, nurtured the project after taking part in a festival in Germany last year. He told Goethe Institute of his desire to stage a German play in Viet Nam for Vietnamese audiences.

Goethe Institute approved the proposal, and Caucasian Chalk Circle was chosen to introduce a new artistic style for Vietnamese theatre lovers.

In the past, Russian theatre director Sergeievich Stanislavsky's reality plays influenced Vietnamese theatre, and Brecht's abstract work was placed on the back burner.

"It is a chance for our regular young audiences to experience a masterpiece which criticises selfishness and teaches confidence," said Nhuan.

"Staging these works will also be a good chance for our actors to get closer to the world contemporary stage."

Freelance German director Dominik Gunther was invited to Viet Nam to work with the Viet Nam Youth Theatre. He first came to Ha Noi in March to cast roles for the play and spent a month on his second trip back to Viet Nam to set up the stage work.

This is the first time Gunther has set up Caucasian Chalk Circle.

The director, who is following the principle of setting up a stage for a specific play only once, said he had been pouring all of his creativity into the production of this play for Ha Noi audiences.

As a freelancer in Germany since 2005, Gunther has directed a number of theatre projects with young people. This is one of the reasons that brought him to the Viet Nam Youth Theatre.

"The artists here are professional and they are very open to working with me. At the beginning, the language barrier made this a bit difficult, but this is not important because we can use body language on the stage," said Gunther.

The director has only praises for his set designer, Doan Bang, who used a modern-style stage design, including props which suddenly appear on the stage during the performance without any apparent movement.

"All different sectors behind the stage are very important. Bang and I work effectively. I'm happy to work with him," Gunther quipped.

In the production for Ha Noi audiences, the director cut off the part on the origin of World War II because it was no longer suitable.

"I think Vietnamese are no longer interested in war. In the bloodiest of times, people reveal their animal instincts," Gunther noted.

After watching the play last Wednesday, veteran stage director and People's Artist Pham Thi Thanh said she was completely charmed by the performance.

"The play is quite physical and intellectual, in keeping with Bertolt Brecht's style. It does not address the audience directly, but it makes them think

a lot. Costumes and props are abstract but quite realistic," Thanh noted.

"I like the play very much. The director brings the characters closer to contemporary life. The characters are diversified, making the play vivid," she added.

Under the project, the play was shown thrice for free on September, then it will be included in the Viet Nam Youth Theatre's repertoire and be staged on every last Sunday of the month.

"Right from the beginning, we believed in the success of this kind of co-operation because it is supported by Nhuan and all theatre members. The artists have been quite enthusiastic and have expressed their full creativity," said Almuth Meyer Zollitsch, the institute's director.

Co-operation with the Goethe Institute is suitable to the theatre's development plan to set up stage masterpieces. In recent years, the plays that were produced included Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House and Athur Miler's All My Sons.

"We acknowledge that setting up stage masterpieces is a way to make the Vietnamese contemporary stage popular in the world," said Nhuan.

 “Disney Live! Mickey’s Magic Show” makes debut in city

Mickey Mouse, Goofy Dog, Donald Duck, Minnie Mouse and Snow White - the most-loved characters from Walt Disney’s cartoons will arrive in Ho Chi Minh City later this month.

They will appear in 12 magic performances, “Disney Live! Mickey’s Magic Show” which will be held at Hoa Binh Theater on September 24-28.

Like its editions in over 300 cities in 75 countries, the “Disney Live! Mickey’s Magic Show” in HCM City will feature fabulous illusions and favorite characters.

It features the special magic from legendary Disney films, performed right before your eyes: Cinderella’s rags turn into a beautiful ball gown in a split second; Aladdin’s Princess Jasmine levitates into the air; and the enchanted dancing brooms in Fantasia help sweep Minnie off her feet.

The Master Magician himself – Mickey Mouse – performs astonishing illusions along with Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother, Alice in Wonderland’s Mad Hatter, and professional illusionist Michael Barron. The magic is complimented by appearances from Disney princesses Belle and Snow

Jim Steinmeyer, an internationally respected designer of magical illusions and theatrical special effects with more than 20 years of world-class

experience, who worked with world-leading illusionists such as David Copperfield, Lance Burton, and Siegfried & Roy, will created some most astonishing tricks at the show, including a dynamic sawing-in-half duet and an awe-inspiring levitation of Minnie set to blacklight.

To the tune of “A Whole New World, illusionist Michael Barron levitates Princess Jasmine in the air.

Disney Live! presents Mickey’s Magic Show will bring audiences into a world where Disney magic takes on a whole new meaning.

Families will have unforgettable experience in a magical afternoon as they watch a fun magic show and get the opportunity to meet popular Disney characters Mickey Mouse and Goofy.

“Disney Live! Mickey’s Magic Show” will have two English-language performances, and the other 10 with Vietnamese voice-overs by local singers and artists.

The 12 performances are expected to cost a total of over VND12 billion (US$564,812).

No-laughing show entertains viewers

Cuoi La Thua, a Vietnamese version of the famous entertainment programme Laugh and You Lose from the Netherlands-based full-service media company Talpa, will air on HTV7 early next month.

The format includes two comedians and two teams whose goal is to make their opponent's audience laugh. Laughter is forbidden on the show.

Similarly, Cuoi La Thua will include funny and fantastic ordeals that are meant to cause audiences break the rule of "no laughter".

Each weekly 45-minute episode will feature two teams of two comedians each competing in six games – Cuoi Len Nao (Laugh), Nhung Hanh Dong Ky Quac (Fantastic acts), Dien Kich (Play-cat), Long Tieng (Dub), Phong Van (Interview), and Doi Mat (Confront).

This is the first entertainment TV programme in the country where laughing will be forbidden.

The first episode of Cuoi La Thua will air on HTV7 at 9.30pm on Wednesday, October 1.

Central Highlands take action to preserve ethnic minority languages

Over the past three years, the Central Highlands provinces have been implementing measures to preserve spoken and written ethnic minority languages.

The Central Highlands comprise the five provinces of Lam Dong, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Kon Tum with a population of 6.5 million.

Forty-five percent of the population is made up of ethnic minorities, including the Bahnar, Jrai, Ede, and Sedang ethnic groups.

According to the region’s Steering Committee, 1.4 million students registered for the 2014-2015 academic year, with 461,000 students belonging to ethnic minority groups. On average, the number of ethnic minority students increases by 10 percent each year.

Kon Tum and Gia Lai provinces added Bahnar and Jrai languages to the curriculum for 3 rd -5 th graders at 121 primary schools. Ede is now taught at 92 primary schools and 13 high schools in Dak Lak province.

Students have also benefited from free textbooks and documents in their mother tongues.

Additionally, ethnic minority language courses have been offered for officials and civil servants to improve their communications with locals.

The Central Highlands provinces also worked with ministries and research institutions to publish Ede-Vietnamese and Bahnar-Vietnamese dictionaries and bilingual books that were distributed to local communities.

At present, Kon Tum and Lam Dong provinces are designing textbooks in Sedang and Churu to expand the coverage of these languages.

Joining the localities’ efforts, the bureau of the Voice of Vietnam now broadcasts news in Bahnar, Ede, Jrai, M’nong, K’ho, and Sedang, the region’s predominant ethnic minority languages.

Each month, the Vietnam News Agency provides 18,300 free copies of the pictorial “Dan toc va Mien nui” (Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Region), written in Bahnar, Ede, Jrai, K’ho and M’nong, to schools and villages throughout the Central Highlands.