In the days leading up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, the children in my neighborhood have been joyfully practicing. Calling it a “unicorn dance troupe” sounds grand, but in fact, it’s just about a dozen kids from grades 1 to 7. One contributes an old drum, another brings a unicorn head or a Mr. Earth mask, while some dig through closets for their mothers’ Ao dai, … all gathered together to form an eager, lively team of little unicorn dancers.

In response to the series of activities within the framework of the Autumn Festival themed “Hue in Autumn” of the National Tourism Year and Hue Festival 2025, the Department of Tourism, in coordination with Hue Monuments Conservation Center and the People’s Committee of Phu Xuan Ward, is preparing a variety of exciting programs for locals and visitors. Among them, the most anticipated highlight is the Unicorn-Lion-Dragon Dance Festival, Hue Unicorn dance performances, and the Mid-Autumn Lantern Parade through the streets in 2025.

Hue is colorful on the days near Mid-Autumn Festival. Hundreds of unicorn heads, together with accessories and props displayed for sale along the street have attracted buyers and wanderers.

As an annual event organized by Hue City People's Committee during the Mid-Autumn Festival and within the framework of the annual Hue Festival, this year's Unicorn - Lion - Dragon Dance Festival and Mid-Autumn Lantern Parade will be held over two days, September 6th and 7th, on the main streets of the city center.

In the Asian worldview, the relationship between Heaven - People - Earth is connected through the animal and plant world, with countless sacred human concepts to ward off evil spirits and pray for peace for people and all things. Among them, the Four Sacred animals (Dragon, Unicorn, Turtle, Pheonix), starting from the Dragon, symbolize the strong desire of the Creation and the traditional beliefs to pray for agricultural residents' good harvests, good weather, and dispelling epidemics.

The dragon, known by the character "long", is a mythical creature steeped in supernatural qualities, standing at the forefront among the four sacred animals: "dragon, unicorn, tortoise, phoenix". It emerged thousands of years before the Common Era, gradually elevated to a symbol in East Asian culture. The dragon is seen as the ruler governing the rivers and seas, often referred to as the Dragon King.

''We should play for people to know what Hue is” is what Mr. Ho Van Nghi previously told us when he was alive. He was the one who founded Thai Nghi Duong Unicorn Dancing Troupe in 1937. That spirit has been kept and promoted by generations of Thai Nghi Duong until now.

Mid-Autumn Festival is an opportunity for children to be excited to join in lanterns parade, admire the moon, watch unicorn dances, and enjoy feasts with Mid-Autumn Festival cakes and fruit. However, for children in many remote and difficult areas, it is really a luxury without the cooperation and sharing from benefactors, charity organizations and groups...

From an endemic creature known as an Asian unicorn, the saola (Pseudoryx nghetinhensis) is grabbing more attention from the community. Aside from becoming the mascot in the 31st SEA Games, the image and name saola also become a business brand in many fields.