Nhan Dan/VNA- The Hue Festival with the theme “Cultural Heritage with Integration and Development” was opened with a series of art performances at Ngo Mon (Noon Gate) Square last night.

On the evening of June 3 the lights of the citadel shone as Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan and a number of Party, State and National Assembly leaders joined dozens of thousands of local people and tourists at the opening ceremony.

Dragon dance.

Walk on stilts by Belgium artists.

Fan dance by Korean artists.

Performances by Japanese artists.

Titled Dem Hoi Hoang Cung (Royal Palate Festival Night), the opening ceremony featured 60 Vietnamese art troupes and international ones.

The main part of the show was titled Hoi Ngo Hoang Cung (Meeting at Royal Palace) and the concluding part Hue Ta (Our Hue).

The organisers attemped to make the ceremony a blend of the culture of Hue, Vietnam and other countries.

The biannual festival will also feature reenactments of the enthronement of King Quang Trung on Ban Mountain , the Nam Giao “peace and prosperity” ceremony, Xa Tac ritual offerings to the God of Earth and the God of Cereals to wish for favourable weather and bumper crops.

There will also be a “Legend of Huong River” programme, a contest to select martial arts masters and an “ao dai” (long dress) festival.

The Hue Festival is organised coincide with the Prime Minister’s decicion to build Hue to become a festival city of Vietnam.