"Voice of the Children", a three-year programme funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), began holding comedic performances, puppet shows and drama classes for young audiences early this month.

Actors from the theatre will be going on tour to remote districts and shelters around the city, offering drama lessons and staging performances in the hope of instilling a love of theatre in the youth.

Hoang Duan, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Drama Theatre and his colleagues, including young actors Bao Tri, Anh Tuan and Thu Trang, plan to offer more than 100 performances to 15-year old children or smaller. Their first three comedy and puppet shows are "Thuong Luong Hoa Rong" (A Monster Transforms into a Dragon), "Chuyen Hai Dua Tre" (The Story of Two Children) and "Bay Len Bong Oi" (Hey, Balloon, Flying Away!), which are due to open this week.

The programme, which will last for three years, with continued assistance from the city's cultural authorities, is mainly about "bringing smiles and happiness to our young audiences".