Art & Entertainment News in Brief Photo exhibition features Hanoians’ portraits and lives A photo exhibition titled “Chân dung và cuộc sống người Hà Nội” (Hanoians’ portraits and lives), organized by the Hanoi Association of Photographic Artists, kicked off on October 8, attracting 176 professional and amateur photographers. As many as 142 photos on display selected from 1,500 entries depict the portraits of elegant and diligent Hanoians in the process of national development and international integration. Additionally, many photos reflect all aspects of daily life as well as places of interest in the capital city such as Hoan Kiem Lake and Ho Tay (West Lake). Students take lead at cai luong fest Young actors from the private drama troupe Sao Minh Beo of HCM City are preparing to take part in the 2015 National Cai Luong (Reformed Opera) Festival in Bac Lieu Province. The artists will stage Trang Lam Quan (Head of the Village), a tragicomedy based on the popular Vietnamese series titled Trang Quynh (A legendary wit living in the 18th century). The play is produced by the troupe's owner Hong Quang Minh, also known as Minh Beo, one of the city's most talented comedians. Directed by Meritorious Artist Pham Do Ky, it tells the life of a young man who leads his villagers against landowners. "Our play borrows old stories to highlight social issues of today," said artist Minh. "We are nervous about performing Trang Lam Quan because it's funny but also contains valuable lessons," he said. Minh invested VND500 million (US$22,000) for the costumes and sound and light effects. Instead of recorded music, he uses a group of skilled musicians who perform on stage. He also invited 60 students from theatres and drama clubs to accompany his troupe's 20 actors. "I wanted to use amateurs because they make the play fresh. My two-year-old troupe brings students closer to the art," Minh said. Before investing in the play, Minh researched the taste of audiences in the city, discovering that cai luong is still popular. "Our problem is how to produce a quality play meeting audiences' requirements, especially young people," he said. In Trang Lam Quan, Minh performs 20 vong co (nostalgia songs) and folk songs. He has worked several hours a day to improve his singing and dancing skills. "I'm a fan of cai luong. For me, all my plays are a big challenge. I'm very involved in the role because I don't want to disappoint my audience," he said. "We joined the festival in the hopes that our troupe will be recognised as a professional theatre. By having this troupe, I can give my young staff the opportunity to develop their techniques and ways of emotional expression." Trang Lam Quan will be staged in HCM City on weekend nights in the 179AB Binh Thoi Residential Area in District 11, before being performed at the festival next month.  Quy Nhon, an undiscovered getaway US travel guide Rough Guides has listed Quy Nhon, the coastal city in the central province of Binh Dinh, in its Undiscovered Southeast Asia: nine places to get off the tourist trail. According to few tourists stop in Quy Nhon, where the main industry remains, fishing and the long sandy beaches are unspoilt. During the Cham era that began centuries ago this was an important commercial centre and evidence of this remains in the imposing Banh It towers on a hilltop just north of town. Rough Guides suggests that visitors should head to Quy Nhon by xe om (motorcycle taxi) for sweeping views of the unspoilt countryside before returning to town for a seafood supper. Rounding off the top nine are places from Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia.  “Space & Life” exhibition opens in HCMC An exhibition themed “Space & Life” which is taking place at Idecaf (31 Thai Van Lung, District 1, HCMC) displays 50 art works of 5P club’s art members.  This is the 6th exhibition organized by 11 artists in 2015, aiming to introduce to Vietnamese and foreign visitors about Vietnam’s natural beauty 11 artists include Nguyen Thi Tam, Co Van Hau, Nguyen Phi Long, Thanh Tam, Duyen Tran, Minh Minh, Yen Truc, Thu Nguyet, Phuong Trang, Nguyen Nhu Khoi and Tran Thuy Linh. The exhibition lasts till October 13. Fahasa starts selling books online HCMC-based book distributor Fahasa on Tuesday launched a book-selling website which up to 10,000 users can visit at a time. On the site at fahasa.com, customers can place orders for books with 10-50% discounts on cover prices. For orders in Hanoi and HCMC, books will be delivered within 24 hours but delivery time may be two to three days in other parts of the country. “E-commerce competition has become stronger. Fahasa has a competitive edge as it has more than 200 local and foreign suppliers,” said Pham Minh Thuan, chairman and general director of Fahasa. Those buying foreign-language books can save some money if they order books on fahasa.com because prices are lower than on foreign websites such as Amazon thanks to lower shipping cost. Along with the development of online book distribution service, Fahasa will open 10 more bookstores within the last quarter this year, raising the total number of new bookstores opened this year to 16. Fahasa has 74 bookstores in 34 of the nation’s 63 cities and provinces. Paintings show features Saigon The HCMC Fine Arts Museum in downtown HCMC is displaying paintings featuring “Saigon in October” artworks by 12 female member artists of the Fine Art Association HCMC. Visitors to the show until October 18 can see 110 paintings in different mediums including oil, lacquer, wood carving and collage. These artworks reflect the love of the authors for Saigon where they have been living and working, seen through the images of small alleys, multi-storey buildings lit up at night, lines of trees on the streets, birds flying in between buildings, and silent moments at church. In particular, the self-portraits of the 12 artists, 11 of them Vietnamese and one South Korean, Kim Jung Hyun, are also on show. Kim has lived and worked in the city for 10 years. Another interesting part of the display is an area exhibiting hand-made products created by the 12 artists such as clay flowers, fabric flowers, necklaces made from stones, bags and scarves. The HCMC Fine Arts Museum is at 97A Pho Duc Chinh Street, District 1, HCMC. SGGP/VNS/VNA