Viet Nam Cultural Week opens in Laos

Attending the opening ceremony were Lam Thi Phuong Thanh, Viet Nam’s Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and Suansavanh Viyaketh, Lao Minister of Culture and Tourism.

Speaking at the ceremony, Minister Lam Thi Phuong Thanh stressed that cultural cooperation has always served as an important bridge, helping to strengthen mutual understanding between the two countries, deepen the bonds of friendship and trust, and further enhance the special relationship between Viet Nam and Laos.

Lao Minister Suansavanh Viyaketh said that the 2026 Viet Nam Cultural Week in Laos marks a new phase of cooperation in culture and tourism between the two countries for the 2026-2030 period.

According to the organisers, one of the highlights of this year’s Cultural Week is a series of puppet performances, including water puppetry – a form of folk art regarded as one of a kind in the world, embodying the ingenuity, spirit, and cultural identity of Viet Nam.

Through richly symbolic artistic language, the performances not only honour the distinctive traditional values of Vietnamese culture, but also vividly portray a peace-loving, warm-hearted Vietnamese people with strong aspirations for development and openness to deeper regional and global integration.

During the opening ceremony, Vietnamese artists staged a number of carefully choreographed performances imbued with cultural symbolism and reflective of the friendship between Viet Nam and Laos.

Among the most notable was a performance recreating the legend of Lac Long Quan and Au Co, affirming the depth of Viet Nam’s cultural roots and the spirit of national solidarity.

Other performances included one featuring Teu, the beloved Vietnamese comic folk character, conveying a message of prosperity, peace, and development, along with showcases of traditional musical instruments such as the dan bau monochord and the T’rung bamboo xylophone, creating a vibrant and distinctive artistic atmosphere.

A performance featuring plumeria flowers — the national flower of Laos — served as a moving tribute, vividly depicting the enduring friendship between the peoples of the two countries.