This year's festival, themed "Converging Heritage - Creating the Future", takes place from 1-4/10, commemorating 50 years of Vietnam's membership in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

During the opening ceremony at Hoang Thanh Thang Long, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra stated that heritage embodies the memory of each nation, a crystallization of wisdom, labor, and creativity spanning thousands of years. However, these values are not merely relics of the past. Heritage values are present in the contemporary world, serving as important resources for shaping the future.

The Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that preservation must be linked with promotion, tradition with innovation, heritage with contemporary life, and culture with people. Additionally, prioritizing the application of science, technology, and artificial intelligence for digitizing, preserving, restoring, and promoting heritage is crucial to bring genuine cultural values closer to the community, especially the younger generation.

Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra at the opening ceremony. Photo: Giang Huy

Each nation and people possesses unique heritage, but their convergence creates a diversity of cultural expressions, according to Pham Thi Thanh Tra. From folk songs, music, traditional performing arts, costumes, cuisine, and traditional crafts to historical sites, scenic spots, festivals, and folk knowledge, all tell stories of people, culture, homeland, aspirations for life, and values that generations wish to pass on to the future. Therefore, "converging heritage means converging people, and converging culture means converging humanity's common values."

Through the world cultural festival in Hanoi, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra hopes to disseminate three messages: First, to converge for mutual understanding and connect for shared development. Second, to cherish and preserve heritage for transmission, and innovate to enrich the value of national and global heritage. Finally, the event creates an international cultural space, aiming to build a peaceful, humane, prosperous, and sustainably developing world.

"We hope the festival becomes a regular rendezvous for world culture, a space for international cultural dialogue, creativity, and cooperation, where heritage values converge, spread, and collectively create the future," the Deputy Prime Minister said.

Lazare Eloundou Assomo, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Center, noted that no place is more suitable for hosting the festival than Hoang Thanh Thang Long. Earlier, at the Asia-Pacific Dialogue on Heritage and Authenticity, he observed that heritage endures not by remaining static but by being understood, interpreted, and continued through each generation.

"This festival is a living testament to that principle: culture does not merely reside in archives. Culture lives when people interact, share, and open their hearts to let culture move their souls," Lazare Eloundou Assomo stated.

The song "Welcome to Vietnam" performed by singer Hoang Bach with the Olympia Inter-level School Choir and Sao Tuoi Tho Club. Video: VTV

The opening ceremony presented an artistic space rich in national identity. The event unfolded on a stage at Hoang Thanh Thang Long, where the heritage site was set up for a live performance. It began with a light projection, recreating characteristic features of ancient Thang Long. Performers combined drum art and dance with models of lac birds.

Inspired by the folk verse "A betel quid starts the conversation", the Quan Ho Bac Ninh troupe performed Moi Trau (betel offering), introducing the Vietnamese culture of communication and hospitality. The male and female folk singers appeared amidst a setting decorated with large Dong Ho paintings, engaging in graceful call-and-response singing. Following this, singer Hoang Bach performed "Welcome to Vietnam", extending a greeting to international friends through modern music.

Subsequent performances returned to familiar colors of traditional Vietnamese art, from xam (blind street singers' music), quan ho, to folk songs from the three regions. Artists Xuan Hinh, Chu Bao Que, Hoa Minzy, and Tuan Cry together performed a medley of Ngoi Tua Man Thuyen - Bac Bling. When the melody of Bac Bling echoed, many spectators sang along, creating one of the most impressive interactive moments.

Lac bird model in the opening act. Photo: Giang Huy

The Hue Royal Arts Troupe presented nha nhac cung dinh (Hue royal court music) with Luc Cung Hoa Dang (six offerings flower lanterns dance). This royal dance, derived from Buddhist rituals, symbolizes offering six gifts to the Buddhas, praying for peace, favorable weather, and prosperity for the nation. The movements were executed at a slow rhythm, creating a reflective pause between the more vibrant performances.

From the Central region, the program transported the audience to the Southern lands with Bai Ca Dat Phuong Nam (southern land song) by musician Lu Nhat Vu, set to poetry by Le Giang, performed by People's Artist Trong Phuc. The singer, along with a choir and dance troupes, recreated the riverside landscapes and people of the South through successive layers of song and dance.

Truc Nhan and Ha Myo explored the fusion of traditional elements and contemporary music with "Made in Vietnam", Trong Com (rice drum), and Xam Ha Noi (Hanoi xam singing). Familiar elements were presented with modern arrangements and performances, creating a transition from heritage to today's music scene.

Singer Duc Phuc concluded the opening night with the work Phu Dong Thien Vuong (Saint Giong), composed by Ho Hoai Anh, inspired by Nguyen Duy's poem "Tre Viet Nam" (Vietnamese Bamboo) and the legend of Saint Giong. This performance helped the singer win the Intervision competition in 9/2025.

Beyond Vietnamese identity, the program served as a bridge connecting the cultural identities of many nations. Compared to last year, this opening event expanded in scale and content, increasing the number of international performances and promoting the combination of traditional art with contemporary forms. Lighting systems, flares, and fireworks were used during climactic moments, exciting the audience.

The Indonesian art troupe performed Chau Dang Khoa's "Nguoi Viet Minh Thuong Nhau" (Vietnamese people love each other). The Chinese art troupe performed "Chung Mot Vang Trang" (Sharing one moon), using the image of the moon as a symbol of peace and harmony.

Chinese art troupe performing "Chung Mot Vang Trang" dance. Video: VTV

The performance by the Korea National Taekwondo Association was applauded for combining Taekwondo demonstrations with modern K-pop music. Strong, fast martial arts movements were integrated into a theatrical structure, showcasing Taekwondo not only as a martial art but also as part of Korean cultural life.

The Lao art troupe introduced Sieng Khen Lao, featuring the distinctive sound of the Lao khene. This instrument is integral to community life, appearing in weddings, festivals, village activities, and artistic performances. In 2017, UNESCO inscribed "Khene music of the Lao people" on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.

After the opening night, the festival continues for four days with many activities, including exhibitions, performances, cuisine, cinema, fashion, music, and experiences. The event features 45 cultural spaces, 35 culinary stalls, 18 nations registered to screen films, and 19 international art troupes with 220 artists from five continents.

The world cultural festival in Hanoi first took place in 2025, organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Hanoi People's Committee. The inaugural event introduced many cinematic, fashion, and culinary activities, celebrating the reading culture of Vietnam and many countries worldwide.

Ha Thu - Phuong Linh