Gangnam-gu to Host '2023 Gangnam Festival' on Yeongdong-daero from October 5-9 Showcasing the Essence of K-Culture... Nowon-gu to Hold 2023 Nowon Street Festival 'Dancing Nowon' on October 7-8... Seongdong-gu to Host 2023 World Folk Dance Festival at Wangsimni Square on October 4 at 7 PM
October is the season of dance.
The sky is clear, and it is such a great season when even horses gain weight. Dance is a fantastic medium that connects people.
Gangnam-gu, Nowon-gu, and Seongdong-gu in Seoul are consecutively holding dance festivals in October.
They have prepared venues where residents can fully experience October together.
Gangnam-gu (District Mayor Jo Seongmyeong) will hold the ‘2023 Gangnam Festival’ from October 5 to 9 at Yeongdong-daero, the COEX area, and Maru Park in Gaepo-dong.
The ‘Gangnam Festival’ is a global festival that consolidates K-culture, recognized worldwide, as Gangnam’s cultural tourism resource. Six programs will be held: ▲Opening Ceremony ▲Gangnam Fashion Festa ▲Maru Park Green Concert ▲Yeongdong-daero K-POP Concert ▲International Peace Marathon ▲K-Culture Stage with a Gourmet Journey.
The festival opens with the opening ceremony held at the COEX K-POP Plaza from 7:00 to 8:40 p.m. on the 5th. The opening ceremony presents the festival’s slogan ‘Paint The Future’ in a four-act musical performance. A spectacular performance unfolds, telling the story of a girl from Gangnam’s future who travels through time to find her lost dreams. Yoon Se-yeon plays the girl, along with Na Tae-ju & K-Tigers, Oh My Girl, La Poem, and Gummy (pre-performance). Using large LED screens around COEX, a vivid and grand stage is created with dazzling media effects.
The Gangnam Festival, a representative festival of Seoul, attracts famous singers and foreign visitors eager to enjoy it.
Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) announced that it will hold the 2023 Nowon Street Festival ‘Dancing Nowon’ on October 7 and 8.
The district revamped the ‘Nowon Tal Festival,’ held for 10 years since 2013, to encourage youth participation and become a festival pursuing youth and the future. The newly introduced Nowon Street Festival ‘Dancing Nowon’ emphasizes ‘dancing’ as a form of physical expression of rebellion and continues the tradition of a free street parade-style festival.
Dancing Nowon will take place on October 7 and 8 from 12:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. along a 555-meter section from Lotte Department Store to in front of Sunbogeum Church near Nowon Station. This year, under the theme ‘Youth and Future! Dynamic Nowon,’ various programs will be held divided into ▲Parade Zone ▲Youth Theme Zone ▲Family Theme Zone.
In the Parade Zone (main stage in front of Lotte Department Store), street parade competitions featuring all genres accompanied by music such as dance, ballet, martial arts, percussion, hip-hop, and cheerleading will be held. With a total prize of 60 million KRW, 68 teams will showcase dazzling performances over two days.
On the 7th from 2 to 5 p.m., a children and youth division competition will be held with 19 neighborhood resident autonomy groups and 14 teams participating. On the 8th from 2 to 5 p.m., a university/general division competition with 35 teams will take place. Skilled performers such as last year’s Tal Parade award-winning teams ‘Force Dance Company (Taekwondo),’ ‘Cheering Union Arari (Cheerleading),’ ‘Shuffle (Dance),’ and the Philippine LED performance dance team ‘Bailes de Lucis’ will also participate.
The festival opens on the first day, the 7th, at 7 p.m. with an opening performance. A 200-member resident choir will sing ‘We Are One’ and ‘Dancing Queen,’ songs of the district’s prosperity and harmony, at the moment of the festival’s opening. The choir has been practicing since July, recruiting residents of all ages who love music.
Following this, the 2023 Dancing Nowon ambassadors, the Taekwondo creator crew ‘Taekwonkree,’ dancing supporters, and the first-day participating teams will appear one by one to perform a dance challenge (flash mob) to the 2023 Dancing Nowon theme song. Simultaneously, the performance group ‘Changjak Joongsim Dandi’ will present an aerial performance with a butterfly motif in the sky.
From 7 p.m. onwards, congratulatory performances by famous artists will take place. On the first day, the 7th, singers Bada, breaking crew Artistreet, and EDM DJs Engine & Minhyuk will perform. On the second day, the 8th, singer YB (Yoon Do-hyun Band), B-Boy crew Fusion MC, and EDM DJ Sancho will deliver exciting stages.
In the Youth Theme Zone (central location), a dancing festival where various dance genres compete will be held. At noon for two days, the popular SNS trend ‘Random Play Dance’ will take place. Teenagers will showcase their talents to randomly played K-pop music. Additionally, dancing-related games such as DDR, Beat Saber, and Nintendo Switch will be available for experience.
On the 7th from 1 p.m., an 8-team 3:3 street dance battle will be held, followed by a 12-team all-genre street dance team performance competition from 4 p.m. Fierce competition will take place for a total prize of 8 million KRW.
On the 8th at 2 p.m., rapper Outsider and dance team Red Crew will hold a ‘Youth Concert’ sharing their experiences along with performances. From 3 to 6 p.m., the preliminary and final rounds of the nationwide breaking battle competition ‘B-On Top,’ held monthly by the district, will also be held.
Seongdong-gu (District Mayor Jeong Won-oh) will hold the 2023 World Folk Dance Festival at Wangsimni Plaza at 7 p.m. on October 4.
The World Folk Dance Festival is Seongdong-gu’s representative festival, gathering about 2,000 residents annually at Wangsimni Plaza to enjoy together, and it is being held again after four years since the COVID-19 pandemic. It offers a rich spectacle through diverse folk dances and performances by dance troupes from around the world.
This year, 13 world-class dance troupes from 11 countries are expected to participate.
Major participating countries include ▲Brazil, known for its splendid costumes and dynamic dance skills ▲the Philippines, performing thrilling acts weaving between sticks ▲Tahiti, with exotic indigenous costumes ▲Lithuania, performing with the theme of 19th-century royal court scenes, among others.
Finally, Korea will be represented by Seonhwa Arts High School, Project Chang, and Ryu Dance Troupe, presenting high-quality pre-performances that will captivate the audience.
A Seoul metropolitan district official advised, "October is the season of festivals, with dance festivals held one after another, so please enjoy them to the fullest."
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