Gwanghwamun Square Reopens... Opening Ceremony 'Gwanghwamun Square Bitmorak' Held on the 6th

Opening Ceremony of Gwanghwamun Square Attended by Prime Minister and Various Figures
Kim Changwan Band, Ilan Chi, Oh My Girl Perform; Citizen Orchestra and Video Messages from Citizens Screened

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Gwanghwamun Square, which had been surrounded by construction barriers for 1 year and 9 months, is revealing itself to the public. To commemorate this, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will hold an opening event called 'Gwanghwamun Square Bitmorak (樂)' on the evening of the 6th.

To celebrate the new beginning of Gwanghwamun Square, attendees include ▲Prime Minister Han Duck-soo ▲Kim Hyun-ki, Chairperson of the Seoul Metropolitan Council ▲Choi Jae-hyung, Member of the National Assembly (Seoul Jongno District) ▲Kim Won, Chairman of the Gwanghwamun Citizens' Committee ▲Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education ▲Choi Eung-cheon, Commissioner of the Cultural Heritage Administration ▲Kim Kwang-ho, Chief of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, along with diplomats from the Myanmar Embassy in Korea and 17 other countries, honorary mayors of Seoul, city council members, district mayors, and various other dignitaries.

Also present will be 300 citizens selected through an online seat application held over five days starting from the 27th of last month. The seat application, which closed on the 31st, saw 5,271 applicants competing for 300 seats, resulting in a competition rate close to 18 to 1. At the same time, live broadcasts of the stage will be shown on the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, the KT Gwanghwamun building exterior, the Haechi Madang video window, and the Yukjo Madang LED screen, allowing people without tickets to watch from various spots around the square.

The highlight of the event is the 'Light of Harmony' segment, where nine 'shining figures' and Mayor Oh Se-hoon will appear on stage together. The first group demonstrates that every age in life shines and holds value, including ▲Pi Ji-hwan (6th grade at Cheongwon Elementary School, 13 years old), recipient of the 2022 Seoul Citizen Award Children's Prize ▲Lee Young-hee (84 years old), a holder of a National Intangible Cultural Heritage who donated her entire property, including her residence and surrounding land, to the state for the construction of a transmission education center for intangible cultural heritage for future generations ▲Lee Dae-hoon (31 years old), a leading star of Korean Taekwondo and former national team member.

The second group consists of artists who live diligently today and inspire us with their shining artistic activities: ▲Jung Eun-hye, who has become more familiar to the public through appearances in tvN's 'Our Blues' and the film 'Your Face' (resident artist of the 11th Jamsil Creative Studio, Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, painting) ▲Cha Jin-yeop, choreographer of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremonies and participant in the Gwanghwamun Square media art production (Artistic Director of Collective A, dance) ▲Kim Dong-a, winner of the grand prize in the 'Preview of Gwanghwamun Square Illustration Contest' (freelance illustrator).

The third group includes KT CEO Koo Hyun-mo, who has led cooperation on media facade exhibitions and community contribution projects with Seoul City; Jung Young-gi, Chairman of the Cheongunhyoja-dong Residents' Autonomy Committee, who has actively participated in discussions and meetings regarding the development of Gwanghwamun Square; and Khalilzadeh Hart, Center Director of Yeoksam Global Village Center, an Azerbaijani expatriate in Korea contributing to promoting Korean culture abroad.

Gwanghwamun Square Bitmorak can be viewed live on Seoul City's YouTube channel. Yeo Jang-gwon, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Balanced Development Headquarters, said, “This is a monumental day marking the turning of a page in the history of Gwanghwamun Square,” adding, “We hope many people will join in illuminating the new beginning of Gwanghwamun Square.”