Seoul Arts Troupe "Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Plan to Relocate to Gwangju Must Be Withdrawn... Public Hearing Needed"

The Seoul Arts Troupe issued a statement on the 13th demanding a public hearing, stating that it cannot accept the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s plan to relocate the Seoul Arts Troupe to Gwangju.

On the 6th, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced "Cultural Korea 2035," which outlines the mid- to long-term policy directions and tasks for cultural policy over the next 10 years. The plan includes relocating the Seoul Arts Troupe, currently at the Seoul Arts Center, to the National Asian Culture Complex (ACC) in Gwangju.

In its statement, the Seoul Arts Troupe argued that the Ministry’s announcement was made without sufficient review of the project’s feasibility and that the administrative procedures were also inadequate. They pointed out serious issues with the unilateral promotion of the plan without prior discussion or public deliberation with the members of the Seoul Arts Troupe.

Accordingly, the Seoul Arts Troupe demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Ministry’s unilateral relocation announcement and the prompt holding of a public hearing to gather opinions from the troupe members and the cultural and artistic community.

Yoon In-chon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is explaining the mid- to long-term core project in the fields of culture, sports, and tourism, 'Cultural Korea 2035,' at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 6th. 2025.3.6 Photo by Jo Yong-jun

Regarding the inadequate administrative procedures, the Seoul Arts Troupe stated that as a national arts organization under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, it is not subject to the Act on the Management of Public Institutions (Gongunbeop) or the Innovation City Act, and therefore there is no clear legal basis for relocating the Seoul Arts Troupe to the ACC.

The Seoul Arts Troupe also criticized the Ministry’s rationale for pursuing a regional relocation and cooperation model for national arts organizations and institutions as weak. Regional cultural balanced development cannot be resolved simply by relocating national arts organizations to local areas. In particular, Gwangju Metropolitan City, selected as the relocation target for the Seoul Arts Troupe, already has more than eight municipal arts organizations actively working toward regional cultural balanced development. Furthermore, Gwangju is not listed as a region facing extinction by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

The Seoul Arts Troupe pointed out that the Ministry’s announcement was made without in-depth discussion regarding the founding purpose of national arts organizations to realize the public nature of art in people’s lives, and it cannot dispel suspicions that the policy measure prioritizes political objectives. Additionally, the Seoul Arts Troupe emphasized that as a national arts organization that has developed Korean-style creative musical theater for over 40 years, it has achieved artistic results difficult for private groups to attempt through experimental efforts in creative dance dramas and building performance repertoires.

Finally, the Seoul Arts Troupe warned that the Ministry’s announced relocation to the National Asian Culture Complex (ACC) and the renaming to "Asia Arts Troupe" risk erasing the artistic assets accumulated by the Seoul Arts Troupe. They also criticized the suddenly proposed mission of "Asian cultural exchange," presented without sufficient discussion with troupe members, as a policy created without deep understanding of culture and arts, posing serious problems. The announcement of relocation to the National Asian Culture Complex (ACC) is a flawed policy decision unilaterally pushed forward without considering various issues such as excessive budget expenditure, lack of creative staff and production infrastructure, fairness issues with local arts organizations, and changes in residence and living environment for troupe members.