Poetry fest heralds Ha Noi’s 1,000 years

Since its debut on Nguyen Tieu day (the 15th day of the first lunar month) in 2003, Vietnamese Poetry Day has become a national tradition in the early spring of each new year.
This year’s Poetry Day will be a "grand festival" held nationwide by the Viet Nam Writers’ Association to mark the 1,000th anniversary of the capital, Ha Noi, and other big national events, according to poet Huu Thinh, chairman of the association.
In the capital city of Ha Noi, the eighth annual Vietnamese Poetry Day will officially open on Sunday.
It will begin with a special procession of the sacred flame from the Thuong Temple, which is dedicated to the Hung Kings – the founders of the nation – and the Royal Edict on the Transfer of the Capital from Hoa Lu (the northern province of Ninh Binh) to Dai La (present-day Ha Noi), written by King Ly Thai To.
According to the organisers, poems – both classical and contemporary, by poets from localities nationwide – will be recited in the main courtyard of Van Mieu (Temple of Literature), which is Viet Nam’s first university.
In honour of the event, Van Mieu will have its entrance decorated as a "forest of poems" with each tree carrying a poem representing a city or province. Representatives from 63 cities and provinces will gather in the Garden of Verses to present their most beautiful poems and 53 ethnic groups will perform their excellent folk verses in the garden.
Poetry written on porcelain products made by artisans in the famed Bat Trang pottery village will be on display.
There will be 550 porcelain vases displaying excellent lines of verse at the exhibition. When the festival wraps up, they will be put on show at the Viet Nam Writers’ Association museum.
The association, which initiated National Poetry Day, has selected 15 famous poems from Vietnamese history to be printed on 15 large porcelain vases. Each one will be presented with the original version in ancient Han (Chinese) or Nom (Vietnamese) script, its meaning and its translation into Vietnamese and English. Poet Nguyen Phan Que and US poet Jennifer Fossenbell will be responsible for translating these poems.
Translated
In the lead up, the association will honour translated poems at the Russian Cultural Centre tomorrow, February 26, and commemorate dead poets on Saturday at Quan Su Pagoda, Ha Noi.
The final round of a poetry competition for students will be at Van Mieu on Saturday evening with 1,200 participants.
They will perform poems together with dance, music and acting. The competition is being held with the aim of bringing poetry closer to the spiritual lives of the youth, Thinh says.
In response to National Poetry Day, localities nationwide have organised activities to honour poetry which has been an integral part of Vietnamese culture for thousands of years.
In Hue City, poetry recitals along with other related activities will follow the theme of "From ancient capital to ancient capital" and a three-day festival of poetry starts tomorrow in the central province of Quang Ngai.
Other provinces like Tuy Hoa, Phu Yen and Thai Nguyen are also preparing for the day of poetry and this year, highlighted activities will take place in Ha Noi and HCM City, according to Huu Thinh.
Writers and literary critics will make a beeline to the HCM City Opera House today to kick off celebrations for National Poetry Day on Saturday.
The event, organised by the writers’ association and its partners, will have "The South Thinking of Thang Long" as the theme for this year, to mark the 1,000th anniversary of the capital city that is being celebrated this year.
Organisers said that a change in this year’s festival will be the focus on works by young poets, including newcomers like Do Thanh Van, Chieu Anh Nguyen and Song May, who will introduce their muses for the first time to the public.
Some of the poets will present their works by singing and dancing on the stage.
Poetry clubs from local universities and cultural houses will introduce their members tonight, while amateur poets will read their works after sharing and discussing their problems.
The Tan Binh District Cultural House’s poetry club [in HCM City] will perform Vui Nhat Co Cho Dong Xuan (Dong Xuan Market at its Most Joyful), a kind of dramatic poetry featuring folk songs and proverbs.
Young members of the Huong Viet Poetry Club will sing songs in the northern cheo (traditional opera) style.
"When I feel sad, I love reading romantic stories in poems by young writers like Phan Huyen Thu and Vi Thuy Linh – who use simple and raw words to give expression to their sensitive souls," said Ly Thanh Tam, a student of the Teachers’ University in HCM City.
Author Le Van Thao, chairman of the HCM City Writers’ Association and a member of the festival’s organising board, said: "We hope young poets and their ideas will bring a fresh breeze to the event."
As usual, works by famous poets such as Le Anh Xuan and Vien Phuong, who had played a key role in developing the country’s poetry scene, will also be highlighted.
Among the guests will be foreigners living in the city, who are involved in other endeavors but are very interested in local art.
Tonight’s show will start at 8pm with a special performance by the city’s Traditional Arts Troupe.
Veteran performers will perform extracts from Chieu Doi Do (Royal Edict for Moving the Capital), a tuong (classical theatre) play featuring King Ly Thai To who moved the capital from Ninh Binh Province to current Ha Noi in 1010.