It will also spread the spirit and message of the 31st SEA Games "For a Stronger Southeast Asia".

In addition to performances of the artists, the event is also expected to impress the audience with light and sound effects created by modern technology.

 

Promoting Vietnamese culture

According to Tran Duc Cuong, a consultant on the history and culture of the 31st SEA Games and the Vietnam Association of Historical Sciences president, the organization board specifically defined the targets of the opening ceremony before staging it.

“As the host of the event, Vietnam needs to introduce the ASEAN community and the world to the culture and traditions of the country, and at the same time convey the message of the SEA Games 31: For a Stronger Southeast Asia,” he said.

The opening ceremony of the 31st SEA Games will be divided into three parts.

The first will showcase Vietnam, with its own culture and identity, as a friendly nation to all countries. The second will demonstrate the strength of the ASEAN community on the world map, and the third will present the solidarity and friendship between Vietnam and other ASEAN members in an effort to unite and build a strong regional community.

Cuong said he strongly believed in the talent of the program’s director general artist Tran Ly Ly and the staging crew.

Currently, over 1,000 artists and art students are divided into two groups for training under the guidance of two top Vietnamese dancers, Kieu Le and Hong Phong, and 15 other experienced choreographers. Dozens of other specialists and technicians will be engaged in setting up the stages and making costumes and props.

Phong’s group now has 250 artists practicing the bamboo and lotus dance to illustrate songs performed at the event.

“Bamboo symbolizes strong vitality, solidarity, sustainability and toughness while the lotus is a symbol of purity, innocence and the tolerance of the Vietnamese people, which are the spirit of the SEA Games,” said Phạm Thanh Tung, group leader and choreographer.

Dancer Linh Nga will perform the lotus flower dance solo, and violinist Bui Cong Duy and artist Lieu Giang will showcase their talents in the song Đường Đến Vietnam (The Road to Vietnam), which will also include the images of áo dài (Vietnamese traditional dress) and conical hats, representing a friendly Vietnam.

 

Modern technology

The stage director for the opening ceremony of the 31st SEA Games, Hoang Cong Cuong, said: “The power of graphic image projection technology [mapping] and Augmented Reality [AR], and Extended Reality technology, which are the latest technologies, will be adopted for the performances showcasing the cultural identity of Vietnam and Southeast Asia in general. There will be a display with the symbols of 40 sports from different countries represented by Vietnamese folk paintings on a graphics slide show.”

Artist Tran Ly Ly, general director of the opening and closing ceremony, revealed that music producer Huy Tuan, the writer of the theme song of the sports event -- Let's Shine -- is also the music director of the show. Conveying strong sports solidarity, the song will close the opening ceremony of SEA Game 31 with the performance of many famous performers in the Vietnamese music industry.

The 31st SEA Games will officially kick off on Thursday at My Dinh National Stadium.

It will feature 40 sports and 526 events, attracting around 10,000 participants from 10 Southeast Asian countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and East Timor.