Mapo-gu's 'Red Road B-Boying' Captivates the World

April 27-28, 2024 Paris Olympics Breaking Event Adoption Commemorative Festival Held
Dance Battle on R6 Stage from 6 PM on Festival's First Day, Celebration Performances by Jinjo Crew, Kim Wan-sun, and Hyolyn
Diverse Handicraft Market, Night Market, Art Festa Filled with Food, Sights, and Entertainment
Park Kang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, “Hope Red Road Dance Festival Becomes a Gateway to Realizing Dreams”

‘Red Road Dance Festival,’ Mapo-gu’s (Mayor Park Kang-su) signature tourism festival that was first held last October to great acclaim, is coming back to us.

To commemorate the official inclusion of breaking in the 2024 Paris Olympics and to wish for the success of our athletes, Mapo-gu will hold the ‘2024 B-Boy World, Red Road International Street Dance Festival’ for two days on April 27 and 28 around the Hongdae Red Road area.

Now in its second year, this festival will take place along the entire Red Road from R1 and R2 to R6, where infrastructure improvements have been completed. The main events of the opening ceremony, including dance battles and celebratory performances, will be held on the special stage at Red Road R6 starting at 6 p.m. on the 27th.

The opening ceremony will be hosted by popular MC Jo Young-gu and will kick off spectacularly with the ‘Red Road Challenge,’ a dance performed by about 100 citizens celebrating the festival.

Following this, the festival’s highlight, the ‘Red Road Dance Battle,’ will begin. Six teams selected through a preliminary video screening will compete passionately on stage in a 1:1 tournament format for a total prize of 11 million KRW.

Additionally, celebratory performances by Jinjo Crew, Kim Wan-sun, and Hyolyn will cap off the day’s festival excitement.

Beyond performances, the entire Red Road will be filled with various food, sights, and activities throughout the festival period. From 1 p.m. to 9 p.m., sections R1, R2, R4, and R5 will host over 80 handcrafted markets featuring accessories, dolls, ceramic crafts, and more, open to all visitors of Red Road.

At R2 Plaza, the ‘Hongdae Red Road Youth Culture Night Market’ will offer street food, while the ‘2024 Red Road Art Festa’ at section R4 will display works by six emerging artists on the street, delighting visitors’ eyes and palates.

Moreover, the R5 street busking booths will feature various performances such as dance busking and Zumba dance, along with experience booths including face painting, caricatures, and a painting contest.

In particular, the painting contest invites tourists to submit paintings on canvases, with nine outstanding works to be selected and awarded prizes.

Park Kang-su, Mayor of Mapo-gu, said, “I hope the ‘Red Road International Street Dance Festival’ becomes a gateway for our dancers to realize their dreams.” He added, “On this warm spring day, I hope families, friends, and couples enjoy the charm of Red Road to the fullest and create unforgettable memories at the carefully prepared festival in Mapo-gu.”