Busan is good

A New Wave in the Performing Arts! 2026 Busan International Performing Arts Market (BPAM) Opens

내용

Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Chun Jae-soo, and the Busan Cultural Foundation will host the 2026 Busan International Performing Arts Market, or BPAM, for seven days from October 1 to 7 at Dongseo University Centum Campus, Haeundae Cultural Center, and other venues.

Now in its fourth year, BPAM is a performing arts market established to support the distribution and exchange of performing arts works from Korea and abroad and to build networks among performing arts professionals. It is hosted by Busan Metropolitan City and organized by the Busan Cultural Foundation.

This year, BPAM has introduced a professional committee system for the selection of works, expanded its nationwide open call, and launched the BPAM Academy to cultivate performing arts professionals. Through these initiatives, BPAM is strengthening its role as a key platform for generating tangible business opportunities in the performing arts and expanding global networks.

The opening ceremony will take place at 7:00 p.m. on October 1 at Sohyang Theater Woori Bank Hall. Beginning with the opening performance The sound of Macbeth, around 100 performances from 12 countries will be staged throughout the event at venues including Sohyang Theater and outdoor spaces such as Busan Citizens Park, offering citizens a diverse range of performing arts experiences.

The opening production The sound of Macbeth is a sensorial reinterpretation of Shakespeare’s classic Macbeth, focusing on sound and light. It is directed by Kim Ara, a leading figure in Korean experimental theater, and features actors including Jeong Dong-hwan, Kim Sung-nyeo, and Song Yong-jin.

A professional committee selected 30 works for the official program, consisting of seven BPAM Choice productions and 23 BPAM Showcase productions. This year’s BPAM will feature works that experiment with new formats and creative approaches, including Nightwalks with Teenagers by Canada’s Mammalian Diving Reflex, a community-based walking performance.

For this work, teenagers themselves select spaces around the city and guide adult audiences through them. Students from Udada in Busan, an international performing arts group, and local artists will participate to present a version unique to Busan.

This year, BPAM will also expand its networking programs supporting exchanges between artists and performing arts industry professionals, as well as the distribution of works, with the aim of generating tangible outcomes in performing arts distribution.

The pitching program, which features short presentations on distribution projects, has expanded from nine participating teams last year to 39 teams this year. Booths where participants can introduce works and related projects will also operate for four days this year, compared with one day last year.

BPAM will also operate programs including BPAM Just Ten Minutes, which provides one-on-one meetings between Korean and international performing arts professionals and artists; BPAM Next Talk, which explores global performing arts trends and issues; and BPAM Academy: Connect, which introduces international performing arts platforms. These programs are intended to strengthen networks among performing arts professionals and support the overseas expansion of Korean performing arts and international exchange.

Around 300 performing arts professionals from Korea and abroad are expected to participate in the event, including approximately 100 international delegates.

Groups of representatives from the Western Arts Alliance, a network of performing arts professionals in the western United States, and CINARS, a Canadian performing arts market, will visit BPAM. Representatives from major international performing arts organizations and events, including Edinburgh Fringe, Adelaide Fringe, YPAM, Düsseldorf Schauspielhaus in Germany, and the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, will also attend.

Mayor Chun Jae-soo said, “We will make every effort to help BPAM grow into a leading performing arts distribution platform in Asia. I hope everyone will fully enjoy the diverse performances taking place across Busan throughout the week as part of their everyday lives. We will also continue to provide strong support so that artists can create freely in Busan and advance onto the global stage.”