Southern dances honoured at folk performance contest

LOCAL TALENT – Dancers from HCM City won two gold medals at the 2024 National Cultural Folk Performance Contest in Quảng Ngãi Province on August 4. They performed bóng rỗi, a dance and singing art form performed at mother goddess worship rituals in southern Việt Nam. Photo courtesy of the contest’s organising board.

HCM CITY — Traditional dancers from HCM City have won top prizes at the 2024 National Cultural Folk Performance Contest.

The artists have won two golden medals after showing their singing and dancing skills on Sunday in bóng rỗi, a dance and singing art form performed at mother goddess worship rituals in southern Việt Nam.

Their performances, called Dâng (Offering) and Hương (Flavor), are directed and choreographed by Sing Trần and Lê Việt.

Young dancing talents Lâm Thế Vinh and Hồng Chuyên captured the hearts of judges and audiences during the show. 

Bóng rỗi singing and dance appeared in the southern region in the 19th century. 

The art is performed at rituals worshipping mother goddesses in southern provinces. 

Bóng rỗi singing is performed at the start of the rituals. The songs help to invite the goddesses and ancestors to attend.

A dance follows in which performers in traditional costumes and makeup hold trays with offerings on their heads.  

Bóng rỗi is offered at mother goddess temples in the region, such as Bà Thiên Hậu Temple in Bình Dương Province and Bà Chúa Xứ Temple in An Giang Province. 

WORSHIP RITUAL – A dancer performs bóng rỗi, a dance and singing art form performed at mother goddess worship rituals in southern Việt Nam. Photo courtesy of the contest’s organising board.

Professor Phan Thị Yến Tuyết of the HCM City Social Sciences and Humanities said bóng rỗi should be performed as part of a tourism activity. “Performing bóng rỗi for visitors would be a way to keep the art alive.” 

The four-day 2024 National Cultural Folk Performance Contest which closed in Quảng Ngãi Province on Sunday, aimed to introduce and promote the value of intangible cultural heritage, customs, traditional festivals, folk songs, folk dances, costumes, and cuisine of Vietnamese ethnic groups. 

It attracted 24 art troupes from different cities and provinces across the country, including the remote provinces of Đắk Lắk, Gia Lai, Sơn La, Thái Nguyên and Tuyên Quang. 

More than 180 performances featuring 2,000 artists were staged.

The organiser, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, gave 29 gold medals for individuals and groups competing in two categories of national costume performance and unique folk performance. – VNS