Preservation of ethnic folk dances face challenges: experts

Folk dances reflect a nation's cultural identity, but limited education programmes and the resultant lack of accurate knowledge for several decades now have made young choreographers less interested in them

Developing and preserving ethnic folk dance arts is a challenge with fewer and fewer troupes performing them, according to experts.

Speaking at a conference titled "Exploring Themes and Folk Dance Language in Contemporary Dance Works," organised by the HCM City Dance Artists Association on October 21, People’s Artist Hà Thế Dũng, vice chairman of the HCM City Dance Artists Association, said folk dances have been declining for long, and efforts to revive them have had little effect.

Folk dances reflect a nation's cultural identity, but limited education programmes and the resultant lack of accurate knowledge for several decades now have made young choreographers less interested in them, he said.

Choreographers have to borrow contemporary techniques to overcome their lack of expertise in folk dances and attract audiences, he added.

Lê Nguyên Hiều, president of the HCM City Dancers' Association, said while applying modern techniques is acceptable, it must be done carefully to preserve the essence of traditional folk culture and ethnic identity.

Experts said most traditional dance forms, with some exceptions, have a developmental aspect.

This includes the integration of modern technologies and equipment to make traditional folk dances more diverse and attract young audiences.

Choreographer Hà Thanh Hậu said this combination must not compromise the core values of folk dance, and creators must understand each genre's identity to preserve the essence of ethnic heritages.

Other experts said preserving traditional dances requires gathering, digitising and distributing data to dance training and research institutions.

Choreographer Phạm Ngọc Phát called on the HCM City Dancers' Association to create clips of folk dances for social media and offer classes for young people to boost engagement.