South Korea's Largest Dance Festival, National Dance Festival, to Be Held in Seoul for the First Time

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will host the 35th National Dance Festival across various locations in Seoul for a month starting tomorrow (September 23).

This is the first time the festival, where dance troupes representing different regions across the country gather to showcase their works and exchange ideas, is being held in Seoul.

Under the slogan "Dancing Seoul, United Through Dance," the opening ceremony of this year's National Dance Festival will take place tomorrow at the National Theater of Korea's Haeoreum Theater.

Renowned dancers, including Universal Ballet principal dancers Lee Hyun-jun and Lee Yu-rim, will perform to open the festival.

The main program, the final competition, will be held at Naru Art Center from October 6 to October 22.

Representative dance troupes selected through preliminary rounds nationwide are scheduled to present creative performances in various genres, including traditional Korean dance, contemporary dance, and ballet.

On October 17, the National Practical Dance Championship will be held at Seoul Noliamadang, introducing a practical dance category to the National Dance Festival for the first time.

The awards ceremony and closing ceremony will take place on October 23 at the National Theater of Korea's Daloreum Theater.

Winners of the final competition and the practical dance category will be announced, and awards such as the Presidential Prize, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Prize, and the Seoul Mayor Prize will be presented.

During the event period, side programs such as invited performances by overseas dance troupes will also be held.

Detailed information can be found on the official website of the National Dance Festival (dancecountry.koreadanceassociation.org).

Min Soo-hong, head of the Culture Division at the Seoul Metropolitan Government, said, "As the 35th National Dance Festival is being held in Seoul for the first time, we hope it will serve as an opportunity for the creative capabilities of regions nationwide and outstanding dance art works to meet new audiences and become more widely known."

(Photo provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.