Yisang-il, Mayor of Yongin, "Opening Yongin Renaissance with Semiconductors + Culture and Arts"

Revealed at the 42nd Korea Theater Festival Yongin Press Conference
"We will hold the University Theater Festival annually to support young theater artists"

"Alongside the economy and industry, what enriches the citizens is precisely 'art.' We will foster the cultural industry in Yongin, which is growing into the world's largest advanced semiconductor city, and open the era of the 'Yongin Renaissance.'

Lee Sang-il, Mayor of Yongin (second from left), is explaining the main event plans at a press conference together with Lee Soon-jae (first from left), Honorary Chairman of the 42nd Korea Theater Festival Yongin.
[Photo by Yongin City]

These are the aspirations of Lee Sang-il, Mayor of Yongin, who is serving as the president of the '42nd Korea Theater Festival Yongin,' which opens on the 28th in the Yongin area of Gyeonggi Province and runs for 26 days until the 23rd of next month.

At a press conference for the Korea Theater Festival on the 11th, Mayor Lee stated, "Since the festival was last held in Suwon in 2006, this is the first time in 18 years that the Korea Theater Festival is being held in Gyeonggi Province, which makes it very meaningful, and we are doing our best to prepare for the event."

The event that Mayor Lee is particularly focusing on is the 'Korea University Theater Festival,' which is being held for the first time at this theater festival. He explained, "We have organized the '1st Korea University Theater Festival' to provide an opportunity for university students who dream of being the main actors on stage," adding, "We want to hold the university theater festival annually and develop it into a representative cultural and artistic brand of Yongin."

Mayor Lee added, "To this end, we are supporting the university theater festival by securing a separate budget in addition to national, provincial, and city funds." This reflects Mayor Lee's well-known special interest in the arts. He emphasized, "To develop theater, we must support talented young people. For this, not only the government but also local governments on the front lines must join forces."

Mayor Lee said, "The success of the Korea Theater Festival Yongin and the development of theater require the interest and support of the public," adding, "To this end, we have prepared various side events that young people can participate in, as well as linked local festivals." In fact, to attract more visitors to the Korea Theater Festival, Yongin City has coordinated with the Yongin Central Market Merchants Association to hold the region’s representative festival, the 'Yongin Central Market Starlight Yard Night Market,' from the 28th to the 30th during the event period.

Mayor Lee urged, "Since we have worked hard to make this event a successful theater festival, we ask for your great interest."