A Korean-Vietnamese 8-year-old girl and her mentor, an American singer/ teacher, won the first controversial local season of the “Your Face Sounds Familiar Kids” reality show past midnight on Saturday.

Ju Uyen Nhi, also known as Ju So Yeun, and her mentor- Kyo York- got away with a trophy and an award of VND700 million (US$32,947), with VND500 million to go to charity.

The pair masqueraded and performed impressively as Hong Nhung, a local pop diva, during the show’s final on Friday night.

Born to a Korean father and a Vietnamese mother who are both living in Vietnam, Ju scored high in the show’s previous rounds for her sweet voice, boisterous performance and bewitching impersonation as local male artists and Canadian singer, songwriter, and actor Paul Anka.

The little girl began learning to sing and perform since she was 3.5 years old.

Meanwhile, Kyo York, who has lived in Vietnam for over four years and considers the country his second homeland, has become a household name to most Vietnamese TV viewers thanks to his appearances as a contender, host, and coach on some game shows.

York, who speaks impeccable Vietnamese and performs emotional Vietnamese songs pretty well, has released several videos which feature him singing against the gorgeous background of Vietnamese landscapes in different regions of the country, including the Mekong Delta.

The season is an adaptation of the Portuguese reality TV show “Your Face Sounds Familiar” for children.

It required contestants to disguise themselves as celebrated singers regarding their appearance and voice.

Six kid contestants, aged from nine to 15, teamed up with six adult contenders from the first and second series of “Your Face Sounds Familiar” to perform in duos, masquerading as iconic musical performers of different eras.

The six adult contenders, who are local actors and singers apart from Kyo, mentor their young partners from all along.

However, the final sparked mixed reactions among viewers as three out of the six acts featured male artists dressing up as members of the opposite sex.

Kyo and two other artists, Minh Thuan and Chi Thien, disguised themselves as a local pop diva, a queen of the feudal times, and a nun for their acts.

Kyo’s appearance with a huge hair bun, heavy make-up and oversized “breast” scared several of the kids in the audiences.

The final of the show, meant for kids as main contestants and audience members, did not end until past midnight, which is another minus.

The high frequency of kids masquerading, or seeing their partners act, as celebrities of the opposite sex in the program’s previous rounds has created unease among many parents, viewers, and educators.     According to a number of TV viewers, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper readers, and Quynh Nguyen – a Tuoi Tre reporter- who covered the program from beginning to end, the show’s minuses outweighed its pluses.

Apart from its inappropriate airing time of 9:00 pm, which is quite late for most kids, the show’s most worrying shortcomings are the high frequency of opposite-sex impersonation and undue mimicking.

Local TV viewers and the Tuoi Tre reporter observed that almost all of the 10 aired episodes feature at least one opposite-sex impersonation stunt.

Though the show’s organizer made it clear right from the beginning that boys were not allowed to dress up as female stars to avoid controversy and a public backlash, young girls freely  impersonated male celebrities.

Psychologists and parents have expressed concerns that excessive imitation can be a major impediment to kids’ creativity, and opposite-sex impersonation which involves the kid contestants themselves or their adult partners can leave a lasting adverse impact on the children’s growing awareness of their own gender orientation.

However, comedian Quoc Thuan- the show’s director, asserted that the show maker did not abuse opposite-sex impersonation to lure views and just allowed contestants to bring out their best.