Vietnam extravaganza rocks Singapore
The Charming Vietnam Gala, an event held for charity and tourism promotion, was a swinging success at its opening in Singapore yesterday.
Jimmy Chua, Singapore’s general consulate in Vietnam, was quoted as saying “the organizers have brought here [Vietnam’s] most beautiful models and talented artists who have distinguished unique Vietnamese cultural features.”
Richard Yin, deputy CEO of the Hong Kong-based Kingsway Group, said the artists and organizers had created a “marvelous art party.”
One source said that art performances from Europe, the US and China have never attracted an audience as large as Charming Vietnam.
Roughly 2,000 viewers including Singaporean, Chinese, French, Indian, and Vietnamese enjoyed the 18th gala.
With a star-studded lineup of Vietnamese and Singaporean artists, the two-hour program focused on traditional and modern Vietnamese arts and fashion. Among the highlights were performances by a drum band and other traditional instruments like the monochord, lithophone (an ancient stone musical instrument) and sixteen-chord zither.
Singaporean starlet Cai Chun Jia teamed up with Vietnamese singers Ha Anh Tuan, Phuong Linh and Pham Anh Khoa to sing Top of the World, while Vietnam’s diva My Linh sang Traumerei and Tuan Ngoc sang Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.
Over 20 beauty queens and models from Vietnam and Singapore rubbed shoulders while showcasing Ao dai collections by Vietnamese designers Si Hoang, Vo Viet Chung and Thuan Viet.
Charming Vietnam was first held in 1994 to raise funds for the Nguyen Thai Binh Scholarship Fund for economically disadvantaged students.
It has so far provided more than 5,000 scholarships worth over VND7 billion (US$436,000).
In 2005, the event was held abroad for the first time in Australia and is set to tour the United States in the future.
The gala’s closing performance in Singapore will play tonight at the Esplanade Concert Hall

Charity extravaganza will charm Singapore, says Thanh Nien chief
Thanh Nien Editor-in-Chief Nguyen Cong Khe has predicted the newspaper’s charity show Charming Vietnam, to be held in Singapore over the weekend, will be a big hit.
In an interview broadcast Thursday on the Chinese language channel of the island’s MediaCorp TV, he said he was convinced that the 18th Duyen Dang Vietnam would be the gala’s most dazzling version since it was first held in 1994.
With a star-studded lineup of Vietnamese and Singaporean artists, its main thrust was to showcase traditional and modern Vietnamese arts and bolster cultural exchanges, Khe said.
Show director Tat My Loan said performances featuring traditional Vietnamese attires like the ao dai (a long tunic) and musical instruments would be the main features.
Others would have Vietnamese and Singaporean artists interacting with each other, he added.
Local starlet Cai Chun Jia, Miss Chinatown Singapore 2006 Leow Cai Ling, and Nagis Abu Masawwir, a famous Singaporean model will rub shoulders with Vietnamese singers and artists like Tuan Ngoc, Huong Lan, My Linh, Dam Vinh Hung, Quang Dung, Quang Linh, My Tam, and 23 Vietnamese beauty queens and models.
The show is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at the Esplanade Concert Hall with tickets priced at 48-168 Singapore dollars (US$31.6-110.7).
Charming Vietnam was first organized in 1994 to raise funds for the Nguyen Thai Binh Scholarship Fund for economically disadvantaged students.
It has so far provided more than 5,000 scholarships worth over VND7 billion (US$436,000).
In 2005 it was held abroad for the first time in Australia and is set to tour the United States.

MTV Asia reports on Charming Vietnam show
MTV News Asia has been broadcasting since Friday a three-minute clip of Thanh Nien’s charity show Charming Vietnam, which was held to rave reviews in Singapore last weekend.
The clip shows flashes of Arabesque group’s drum dancing, then the performances by singers Ha Anh Tuan and My Tam, and others before the host Colby Miller catches up with My Linh and asks the diva if she was under any pressure since she was the first to take the stage.
Linh says of course she was, but “just a little bit”.
Colby then chats up hot male singer Dam Vinh Hung, welcomes him to Singapore again to sing and to enjoy Singaporean noodles, Hung’s favorite food in the city-state.
The clip than shows girl band Mat Troi Do (The Red Sun) singing Da Trong Chong (Longing to receive husband) in folk style.
There is a brief interview with the chief musical arranger, Duc Tri who is happy with the gala’s success. He is also pleased that the festival could showcase the ao dai (traditional tunic) to the world.
The clip will be on MTV News Asia until next Monday.