Girlband A-Daily will perform at the festival. Photo courtesy of the organiser

HÀ NỘI — As many as 80 artists from Việt Nam and South Korea will perform together at the Korean Cultural Exchange Festival on June 30 in Hà Nội.

It’s part of an effort to boost mutual understanding and friendship between two countries and introduce Korea to the world.

The festival will promote the traditional culture and art of South Korea. A highlight will be Yeong San Jae, a Buddhist ceremony which was added by UNESCO in 2009 to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Twenty monks from Korea will perform the ceremony, which is a re-enactment of Buddha’s delivery of the Lotus Sutra on the Vulture Peak in India. Through rituals and dances, the philosophical and spiritual messages of Buddhism are expressed.

Monks will reproduce the UNESCO-recognised Yeong San Jae ceremony in Hà Nội.

Hallyu (Korean wave) fans will be eager for a concert gathering famous stars such as singer Budy, boyband Samchongsa and girlband A-Daily. Singer Lưu Thùy Linh and eight Vietnamese dance groups will join the performance.

Song Kyo-young, director of the Korean Institute for Culture and Economy Promotion, the organiser of the event, said this is the first time the programme has been organised in Việt Nam. He expected Vietnamese partners to work together to organise the programme annually.

“Our institute is a non-profit organisation with a mission to honour UNESCO-recognised heritage and bring the traditional cultural values of Korea to the world,” he said.

“We also work to strengthen the friendship and mutual understanding between Korea and other countries.

“With the success of the festival in Việt Nam, we will organise similar events in other Southeast Asian countries.”

The festival will start at 1pm at the Grand Plaza, 117 Trần Duy Hưng Street, Hà Nội. Entrance is free. — VNS