Thang Long – Hanoi Festival 2026 opens with a multicoloured cultural “Art Feast”
WVR - On the evening of September 11, the second Thang Long - Hanoi Festival 2026, themed “Heritage Flow”, organized by Hanoi City, officially commenced at the Thang Long Imperial Citadel Heritage Site.
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| A performance at the opening ceremony of the second Thang Long - Hanoi Festival 2026. (Photo: Viet Thanh) |
Combining heritage, art, creativity, and technology, the Festival aims to bring traditional cultural values closer to the public, expand international exchanges, and contribute to the development of Ha Noi's cultural industry.
Attending the opening ceremony were central government representatives: Politburo Member and Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc; Party Central Committee Member and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and Central Mass Organizations Nguyen Quang Duc; Party Central Committee Member, Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee, and Chairman of the City People's Committee Vu Dai Thang...
Also in attendance were international delegates, various social strata, and tourists from all over.
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| Delegates perform the opening ceremony of the Thang Long - Hanoi Festival 2026. (Photo: Viet Thanh) |
Cultural destination, honouring unique traditional values
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Chairwoman of the City People's Committee Vu Thu Ha stressed that the capital Ha Noi is the national political and administrative center, with a thousand-year-old tradition of culture and history, a place where Vietnamese intelligence is crystallized and shines.
Ha Noi boasts a rich historical background and a diverse cultural heritage, integrating the cultures of Thang Long and the regions of Doai, Dong, Kinh Bac, and Son Nam Thuong.
The integration of distinctive cultural heritages has connected and enriched a unique Ha Noi, creating a solid foundation for the capital's culture to develop under the orientation of “Culture - Identity - Creativity - Integration - Connection”, linking the preservation and promotion of thousand-year-old cultural values, gradually transforming Ha Noi into a cultural industry center rich in identity, dynamic, and creative.
According to Deputy Chairwoman Vu Thu Ha, the 2026 Festival marks the first participation of artists and performers from art troupes of Ho Chi Minh City, Hue City, Dien Bien Province, Dak Lak Province, and three international traditional music groups from the Republic of Korea, Japan, and India. This creates a cultural exchange space, gradually turning Ha Noi into a cultural destination, a place that gathers and honors unique traditional values, connecting with a spirit of creativity.
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| Deputy Chairwoman of Ha Noi City People's Committee Vu Thu Ha speaks at the opening ceremony. (Photo: Viet Thanh) |
During the opening program of the Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival, residents and visitors enjoyed a multicoloured cultural “art feast”. The 90-minute program was structured into three chapters.
Chapter I - “Awakening the Heritage - Igniting the Heritage Flame” opened with AR technology recreating the Doan Mon space of the Thang Long Imperial Citadel.
Chapter II - “Heritage Intersection” depicted Thang Long - Ha Noi through images of craft villages and streets.
Chapter III - “Multicoloured Confluence” introduced art troupes from Ho Chi Minh City, Hue, Dien Bien, Dak Lak, and international art troupes from the Republic of Korea, Japan, and India, concluding with a choral performance “Ha Noi Greets the World”.
The program featured artists such as People's Artist Thanh Hoai, Meritorious Artist Van Ty, Meritorious Artist Van Khue, Tung Duong, singer Kieu Anh, Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Ngo Lan Huong, and the Oplus group...
A new highlight of the program was the creation of numerous works specifically to emphasise the thousand-year-old cultural beauty of Thang Long - Ha Noi, such as “Rhythm of Thang Long” (lyrics by Nguyen Quang Long, music by Pham Viet Tuan), “Igniting the Heritage Flame” (composed by Nguyen Quang Hung), “Ha Noi - Land of Learning and Spirit” (lyrics by Nguyen Quang Long, music by Pham Viet Tuan)...
Additionally, a standout feature was the intergenerational exchange performance with Republic of Korean artists. The “HAN UL - Echo of Korea” troupe, consisting of 19 members, presented two performances: Traditional Samulnori musical instruments and Hanbok fashion show by senior Korean models.
Furthermore, art troupes from Japan and India also contributed to making the Festival a more distinct multi-national cultural exchange compared to the first season.
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| The moment of the opening of the Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival 2026. (Photo: Viet Thanh) |
“Heritage Flow” narrated in multiple languages
Running continuously for 10 days (from September 11 to September 20), the second Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival 2026 includes dozens of events at various historically and culturally significant locations such as the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, the Temple of Literature - Quoc Tu Giam, Ha Noi Museum, Bat Trang Commune, the “Sacrifice for the Nation” Monument, and Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square.
The Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival 2026 features the participation of over 3,000 artists and performers. Notably, more than 100 artisans and heritage practitioners from the capital's localities participate in performances, practices, preservation, and transmission of heritage within the community.
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| A performance at the opening ceremony of the Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival 2026. (Photo: Phi Khanh) |
Besides the opening ceremony, a series of simultaneous events offer attractive heritage experience spaces. At the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, on the evening of September 12, an international art exchange program takes place with troupes from Japan, the Republic of Korea, India, and artists from various provinces and cities nationwide. On the evening of September 13, the “MOVE Fest - The Train of Continuing Essence” youth music program brings contemporary art to the heritage space.
The Temple of Literature - Quoc Tu Giam is a rendezvous for experiences associated with heritage and craft villages, featuring exhibitions, displays, and experiences of craft excellence and art performances. The public can engage in various activities connecting heritage with craft village excellence, such as exhibitions, calligraphy exchanges, introductions to traditional drum sets; experience night tours of the Temple of Literature and the premiere of the 3D mapping film “Quoc Tu Giam - The First National School”.
Meanwhile, Ha Noi Museum hosts exhibitions, experiences, and performances of intangible cultural heritage with the participation of artisans, artists, researchers, and clubs.
On September 19, at Bat Trang, the “Ceramic Sound” program explores sound from ceramic materials and instruments to tell the story of the craft village through a new artistic language. On the same day, at the “Sacrifice for the Nation” Monument area, the “The Colour of Hanoi” program offers visitors an experience connecting fashion and contemporary design with local materials and craft excellence.
On the evening of September 20, the Festival concludes at Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square.
From thousand-year-old heritage spaces to contemporary stages, “Heritage Flow” is being narrated in multiple languages. Through the Thang Long - Ha Noi Festival, Ha Noi continues to seek new methods for heritage not only to be preserved but also to be creatively transmitted and become a resource for the cultural, tourism, and cultural industry life of the capital.
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| The event sees the participation of numerous citizens and tourists from all over. (Photo: Phi Khanh) |
Application of modern technology
The highlight throughout this year's Opening Ceremony is the motto “Continuous - Adaptive - Connected”, expressed through the stage imagery as a “connecting flow”, where layers of historical and cultural values of Thang Long - Ha Noi are continuously conveyed between heritage spaces and contemporary art language.
The program combines LED screens, visuals, sound, laser lighting, and AR technology to expand the performance space, bringing images of Ha Noi's heritage, landmarks, and cultural values closer to the stage and audience. AR technology is exploited as a connecting method, creating visual interaction between the real stage space at the Thang Long Imperial Citadel and other heritage spaces of the capital, thereby creating a sense of a continuous cultural flow across spaces and times.
The combination of real stage, projected images, AR, laser lighting, sound, and performance art contributes to vividly and visually recreating layers of history and culture; simultaneously creating a modern visual effect, enhancing the audience's experience, and increasing the program's reach to domestic and international audiences.
