The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on February 2 that it has selected 41 local performing arts groups to participate in the "2026 Regional Representative Arts Group Support Project" and will provide a total of 14.5 billion won in funding to these groups.
The Regional Representative Arts Group Support Project is a program in which the Ministry provides partial national funding (40-70%) to local arts groups that have been initially selected by each local government, after a final review. The Ministry plans to support a total of 14.5 billion won, combining national and local funds, for the creation, production, and regional performances of works by the selected arts groups, in collaboration with each local government.
The Ministry launched this project in 2024 to address regional disparities in the performing arts sector, discover and nurture arts groups active in local communities, and help them establish roots in their regions. This year’s call for participating groups was held from October to December of last year, targeting metropolitan and basic local governments nationwide, excluding Seoul. A total of 62 local governments, representing about 30% of all local governments outside Seoul, participated in the call. In terms of arts groups, 102 groups that had passed the initial selection by their local governments applied.
The 41 arts groups selected this time include 4 from Gangwon, 6 from Gyeonggi and Incheon, 13 from Gyeongsang, 8 from Jeolla and Jeju, and 10 from Chungcheong. By field, there are 17 in theater, 11 in traditional arts, 8 in classical music, and 5 in dance. Among the selected groups, 11 have been chosen for two consecutive years, including 2025.
The Ministry stated that the groups selected this year have enhanced the significance of the Regional Representative Arts Group Support Project by creating and producing performances that reflect local cultural resources, communities, and the current realities of their regions. In particular, the Ministry highlighted the efforts of groups such as "Hon, Traditional Arts Group" from Seocheon, Chungnam, which integrated "Jeosanpalueup Gilsam Nori" from Hansan, Seocheon into their performance, and "Yedo Theater Company" from Geoje, Gyeongnam, which will stage a musical based on Geoje Island and the Korean War, as outstanding examples of discovering unique regional performance content.
Lee Yongshin, Director of Arts Policy at the Ministry, said, "The Regional Representative Arts Group Support Project aims to discover, nurture, and establish outstanding local groups, thereby expanding opportunities for local residents to enjoy the arts and achieving balanced development of the performing arts ecosystem. The Ministry will continue to provide strong support so that arts groups from various fields can engage in artistic activities across the country, based on unique regional content, and invigorate the local arts scene."
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