Busan is good

The 22nd Busan International Dance Festival to Open on June 5!

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Busan Metropolitan City announced that it will host the 22nd Busan International Dance Festival (hereinafter referred to as the “Festival”) for six days from June 2 to 7 in collaboration with the Busan International Dance Festival Organizing Committee at venues including Busan Cinema Center, Haeundae Beach, Busan Cultural Center, and Busan Station.

A total of 44 dance companies from 13 countries, including Korea, Canada, France, Denmark, Mongolia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Argentina, Taiwan, Spain, Japan, Lithuania, and Estonia, will participate and present around 60 diverse performances to audiences.

The opening performances of this year’s Festival will feature two representative works of contemporary dance and contemporary ballet from Quebec, Canada, expressing the theme “The Age of Crisis, Questioning Existence.”

The first performance, ÊTRE DE BOIS, choreographed by Chantal Caron, explores the relationship between nature and humanity while revisiting the roots of existence. This will be followed by BURN BABY, BURN, choreographed by Guillaume Côté, which powerfully and dynamically portrays the desires and anxieties of people living in the contemporary era through expressive movement.

The two works form one grand narrative by sharply contrasting a “return to nature” with a “reality heading toward destruction.” This special journey, moving from the quiet passage of life to an age of burning desire, offers audiences a profound sensory experience of existence.

The Official Domestic and International Invitation Performances, featuring a variety of works, will take place over two days on June 6 and 7 at the special stage on Haeundae Beach.

This year marks the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and France and the 10th anniversary of the friendship cooperation city partnership between Busan and Ulaanbaatar. In celebration, performances and collaborative projects with artistic groups from those countries will be presented. In addition, ÊTRE DE BOIS by Quebec-based company Fleuve | Espace danse, selected through the newly launched “Beach-Specialized Performance” international open call, will blur the boundaries between nature and art.

Street performances will also be held on June 4 and 7 around Haeundae Gunam-ro and Busan Station, allowing international artists to interact directly with citizens in everyday public spaces.

As part of the special programs, the Festival newly established the Busan International Dance Festival (BIDF) Fringe, a free and open creative platform. French artists will also be specially invited to commemorate the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and France, further expanding artistic exchange between the two countries.

The newly introduced BIDF Fringe is an open platform encouraging participation from emerging choreographers to established artists alike, supporting creative experimentation unconstrained by genre or format.

In addition, the Festival will present a wide range of programs including the Arts Korea (AK)21 Choreographer Competition to discover next-generation choreographers, Customized Outreach Arts Appreciation Programs, an Open Stage with the Busan Dance Association and Busan dance artists, and presentations from the Busan-Japan Collaborative Creative Residency, offering audiences the essence of high-quality performing arts.

Tickets for the Special Invitation Performances and Fringe Performances at Busan Cinema Center are available through NOL Interpark Ticket (nol.interpark.com/ticket) and the Busan Cinema Center website (www.dureraum.org). Outdoor performances including those at the Haeundae Beach special stage and street performances are all free of charge.

Further details including the performance schedule are available on the Festival’s official website (www.bidf.kr) or by phone at +82-51-868-7881.

Cho Yu-jang, Director General of the Culture Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City, stated, “The Busan International Dance Festival is both a global platform for artistic exchange and a celebration of dance,” adding, “We will continue to actively support its growth as an international arts platform that enhances the city brand of Busan as a global hub city.”