An international dance festival kicked off in the imperial Hue city in the central Thua Thien-Hue province on April 14 as part of Hue Festival 2014, with the participation of 24 art troupes from countries and territories.

Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Vuong Duy Bien said the artists will stage a total of 37 dances – each lasting 20 minutes. Excluding the host Vietnam, foreign troupes are allowed to perform with 14 members only, Bien added.

The festival, which will run until April 18, creates a good chance for local dancers to exchange experience with their foreign peers as well as fuel their creativity in the field.

The biennial Hue Festival, the eighth of its kind, is taking place in the UNESCO-recognised World Cultural Heritage city of Hue from April 12 - 20.

Themed “Cultural heritage with integration and development”, it will feature a forum for East Asia – Latin America cooperation, a conference of ASEAN+3 cultural ministers, and culinary festivals, trade and tourism fairs, among others.-VNA