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Dance in Vietnam comprises several different forms including dance as performed inVietnamese theatre and opera, dances performed at festivals, and royal dances of the imperial court. Dance is thought to have been an integral part ofVietnamese culture since ancient times.
Vietnam is a diverse country with54 different ethnic groups, with the ethnic Vietnamese (known asKinh) making up the majority of the population. This article mainly focuses on the traditional dances of the ethnic Vietnamese, although each of the many ethnic minorities of Vietnam have their own rich culture and dance styles.
Much ofVietnamese theatre andVietnamese music are intertwined with each other, as well as with Vietnamese dance. Popular theatre forms such asHát tuồng,[1]Hát chèo,[2] andCải lương[3] all often feature dance, however these dances are performed in a liberal manner without set rules, unlike other more specific dance styles.
Thelion dance was imported from China into Vietnamese culture where it developed its own distinct style. It is performed primarily at traditional festivals such asTết (Lunar new year) and Tết trung thu (Mid-Autumn Festival), but also during other occasions such as the opening of a new business. The lion dance is highly symbolic, supposedly used to ward off evil spirits. There are an abundance of styles and the lion dances are typically accompanied bymartial artists andacrobatics.
Accompanied withNhã nhạc (court music of theTrần dynasty to theNguyễn dynasty) were the intricate dances of the Vietnamese Imperial court. Nhã Nhạc means "elegant music" when translated. While assuredly court dances existed before nhã nhạc in particular emerged, it is the Nguyễn dynasty form that is still highly preserved today, and has been declared along with the whole of nhã nhạc as anIntangible cultural heritage.
These dances require great skill and the dancers are often dressed in extravagant costumes. Currently, they are performed at festivals in Huế (múa cung đình Huế - court dance) or other special (oftentelevised) occasions, in order to promote the traditional arts. Some of the most popular dances include (among others):
The meaning of "múa" extends to Múa rối nước -water puppetry
