Hanoi Dancers Association launchs competition

Hanoi (VNA) – The Hanoi Dancers Association has launched a competition to
choreograph a typical Vietnamese dance.

The main purpose of the competition is to create a dance featuring traditional moves
while being easy for people to perform.

The same competition was held in 1988 and nine dances won top prizes, which were
performed at some subsequent events but were then gradually forgotten.

“In the past we had some dances that were nameless and died,” said People’s
Artist Ung Duy Thinh. “That’s why the most important thing is not the
composition or the music, but how to maintain it and develop it throughout the
community.”

Thinh further said that he had also helped organise a competition for composing
ten dances for military forces. The dances were popular at first, but they faded
quickly.

Thinh warned that the dancing community should be careful not to make the same
mistake again.

“A Vietnamese dance is like a new product, which should have its own consumers
and time to be popularised among the community,” said dancer Ly Van Phuc. “As
in business, we should invest properly in advertising while practising and
maintaining the dances to make them come alive.”

Many dancers shared the same point of view that Vietnamese people, in general, do
not have any typical dances.

Various dances of ethnic minority groups have been used at cultural events like mua
sap (dance with bamboo poles) of Thai ethnic groups, dance with gongs of ethnic
groups in central highlands and the dance with a bamboo flute of the Mong ethnic
group.

Today’s youth in cities prefer hiphop, salsa and ballroom dancing.-Enditem