In October, various cultural festivals are being held in various places across Korea for people to enjoy and experience Korean culture. There will be about 991 festivals held in Gangneung, Seoul, and many others.
2011 Seoul Performing Arts Festival
The Seoul Performing Arts Festival takes place every fall in Seoul’s major performance spaces. This festival is mainly sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Marking its eleventh year, SPAF is one of the most prestigious culture and art festivals in Korea.
This yr SPAF introduces 37 outstanding works from both local and international artists in all different genres including theater, dance, musicals, and multimedia art.
Nocturne, one of the international performances, is getting a lot of attention. Created and directed by Yaron Lifschitz, Nocturne is a circus with incredible artistic sensibilities. This circus performance is like a piece of lyrical poetry written by the human body and deeply touches the audience’s feelings. The performance is on October 16 at 7 p.m. and October 17 at 8 p.m. at Sogang University Mary Hall.
There are also other international performances such as Megalopolis from Germany, The Holy Innocents from Colombia, and Cinématique from France. Also there are Korean performances such as Tosca in Seoul and The Tricks of Scapin. For more information, please visit the official site, http://www.spaf.or.kr/.
2011 World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do
The 8th World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do kicked off on October 1 and will run until October 30 at the Sori Arts Center in Jeonju and other locations around the city. This festival first began in 1997.
Under the theme of “Dynamics,” 1821 pieces of work will be introduced by 1,849 artists from 30 countries. This biennale has three sections: the Exhibition of Dynamics of the World Calligraphy, the Exhibition of 11,172 Letters of the Hangeul Alphabet, and the Exhibition of Calligraphy Signs, Book Covers, and Brands.
There are also other programs such as an academic conference titled “Feasibility of Dynamic Fusion of Calligraphy with Other Genres” and a hands-on calligraphy program.
Moreover, there are also other festivals to enjoy such as the 16th Busan Internatonal Film Festival which runs from October 6 to October 14, the 16th Buncheong Ceramics Festival of Gimhae, the Busan International Fireworks Festival, and the Gwangju World Kimchi Culture Festival.
By Harry Chan Lee
Article adapted from KNTC magazine
