The finest folk culture, including ritual performances and other traditions, will be shown in the first Ninh Bình Folk Culture Festival 2025 in November. Photos baovanhoa.vn

NINH BÌNH — The first Ninh Bình Folk Culture Festival 2025 will treat visitors to a cultural 'feast' showcasing the finest traditional singing and dancing performances from the ancient capital.

Under the theme 'Ninh Bình Province's thousand years of historical and cultural relics converge and spread', the celebration will gather troupes from famous local relic areas to honour the region's rich heritage, connect the community and promote sustainable development.

Performances will be held in the Lảnh Giang Temple national historical and cultural relic site, located in the province's Duy Tân Ward. The event will take place over two days in November, with the official date to be confirmed in the next few days.

"The festival is an opportunity to promote traditional cultural values, and especially historical and cultural relics and scenic spots, among the community and to visitors," said deputy director of the provincial Department of Culture and Sports Vũ Thanh Lịch.

"It will also contribute to building and spreading Ninh Bình's typical cultural essence and local beauty, while fostering national identity, and raising awareness of the region for other localities and the world."

Management boards of the area's relic sites will also be able to meet and exchange their opinions and experiences in the fields of management, conservation, restoration and mobilisation of social resources in promoting cultural heritage.

The event also aims to celebrate the anniversaries of important holidays and political events for Việt Nam and Ninh Bình, including the first congress of Ninh Bình's Provincial Party Committee for the 2025-2030 term and Việt Nam Heritage Day on November 23.

According to the organising committee, the festival will gather the finest quintessence of the province's folk culture as part of the ancient capital's rich heritage.

Local residents and tourists will enjoy folk arts, such as chèo (Vietnamese traditional opera), Lải Lẻn singing and dancing (performed in sacrificial ceremonies during festivals), Trống Quân singing (folk singing alongside drums), xẩm singing (blind buskers) and communal house singing, among others.

Over two days of activities, visitors will get the chance to explore traditional culture and the distinctive historical value of numerous heritage sites. They will also enjoy live demonstrations of ritual ceremonies, commemorations of victories and celebrations marking the birth and death anniversaries of village guardian spirits, along with various other spiritual practices. 

Artisans of Yên Từ Commune practise their xẩm performance for the festival.

"This festival, we will see two special items: a drama excerpt entitled 'Nộn Khê Village - home to clear streams and heroics' and a xẩm performance 'Nộn Khê, A Heritage Land'," said An Viết Thọ, head of Yên Từ Commune's Culture and Social Affairs Department.

"Our artisans and the Nộn Khê communal house relic management board have been working hard with a view to deliver our best performances in the festival. We hope that they will impress tourists and other audience members, as well as giving them more knowledge about the nation's beautiful folk culture."

Traditional folk games like lion dances, festival drum performances and rice cooking contests will also be held to bring an entertaining atmosphere to festival goers. VNS