"What Artists Need Is Promotion and Distribution"... Seoul Autumn Festa Embarks on a 73-Day Journey

558 Programs and 2,014 Performances Across Seoul Starting September 18
Participation Expands to 28 Countries, Elevating Seoul as a Global Performing Arts Platform

"Artists in the field have said that the most pressing need is not a limited budget, but rather a system for the promotion and distribution of their works. I thought it was important to address issues of publicity and distribution."

Song Hyungjong, CEO of the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, explained the reason for launching a renewed 'Seoul Autumn Festa' last year at a press conference held on the 10th at the Seoul Theater Creation Center in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.

Seoul Autumn Festa is Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture’s integrated performing arts festival brand, bringing together various performance arts and festivals held throughout Seoul in autumn. While maintaining the independence of genres such as theater, dance, music, traditional arts, and street performances, the aim is to organically connect them under the Seoul Autumn Festa brand, in order to raise public awareness and broaden viewing opportunities for more citizens. Seoul Autumn Festa is not limited to providing support for performances and festivals, but acts as an integrated performing arts festival platform designed to assist with promotion and distribution as well.

Song Hyungjong, CEO of Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, is delivering a greeting at the press conference held on the 10th at the Seoul Theater Creation Center in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul. Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture

Song stated that the second Seoul Autumn Festa will be held throughout Seoul for 73 days, from September 18 to November 29. Compared to the 40-day festival period last year, the duration has nearly doubled. The number of participating works has also seen a significant increase, from 116 last year to 245 this year.

The second Seoul Autumn Festa will run under the slogan ‘Seoul’s Autumn, The City Becomes Art.’ A total of 558 detailed programs—including 38 festivals and 478 performances—will be connected under a single brand, offering 2,014 presentations to audiences. The number of participating countries also increased from 10 last year to 28 this year.

Song commented, "We are preparing for a much larger festival this year both in quantity and quality," adding, "We are creating a platform for Seoul’s artists and, through these results, aim to provide comfort to Seoul citizens and many art tourists from around the world."

Korean traditional musician and actress Oh Jung-hae has been appointed as co-chair of the organizing committee alongside Song. Additionally, the city of Seoul, the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, Sejong Center, major cultural organizations, 22 district cultural foundations, and private performance groups are all participating in the event.

Lee Geonwang, President of the Seoul District Cultural Foundation Association, representing 23 district cultural foundations, said, "With the creation of the Seoul Autumn Festa platform, district cultural foundations have found relief in terms of promotion and planning," and noted, "the number of participating works increased from 17 works from 9 foundations last year to 56 works from 22 foundations this year."

Through Seoul Autumn Festa, the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture plans to establish a hub for domestic and international performing arts distribution and exchange and to expand the stage for Seoul’s artists beyond the region to the world. The foundation plans to build a network with regional cultural foundations to create a performing arts distribution base, enabling excellent Seoul-based performances to reach the regions and outstanding regional performances to be presented in Seoul.

International exchanges will be strengthened as well. Major festivals and performing arts institutions such as the Adelaide Festival in Australia, Arts House Limited in Singapore, the San Francisco International Arts Festival, and the Grec Festival in Barcelona will be invited to Seoul, with networking programs designed to introduce outstanding domestic works and discuss international distribution and cooperation strategies.

Song emphasized, "In this era where the world is paying attention to K-culture, I believe it is vital to share the depth of pure arts from Seoul—the origin of Hallyu—with the global audience," stressing that he aims to develop Seoul Autumn Festa into a world-class performing arts exchange platform in the long term.

The opening performance, to be staged on September 18 on the Han River, will be directed by choreographer Lee Ruda of the Blacktoe Dance Company as artistic director. Performance groups such as the Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theater, traditional musician Oh Jung-hae, dancer Choi Hojong, Melancholy Dance Company, and Blacktoe Dance Company, among others, will collaborate in creating the stage.

Artistic Director Lee Ruda commented, "Seoul is characterized by the coexistence of tradition and advanced culture, and by the way cultures meet and blend at a very fast pace," adding, "we are preparing a story about Seoul as a city that best exemplifies the theme of ‘Dancing Han River, Shining Seoul.’"

Participants of the '2026 Seoul Autumn Festa' press briefing are taking a commemorative photo. Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture

The closing event of this year’s Seoul Autumn Festa will be the Seoul Arts Future Talks (SAFT) held on November 17 at DDP Art Hall 2. Globally renowned figures in the arts, such as Glyn Roberts, CEO of Festival City Adelaide, and Trevor Paglen, winner of the Guggenheim Museum Award, will gather in Seoul to discuss 'the future of art.' The foundation announced plans to strengthen Seoul's role as a city that takes the lead in global arts issues and creates new narratives in the world’s cultural and arts spheres.

Song added, "In the third year, next year, we plan to extend the festival to a 100-day event starting from September 1," and continued, "the opening ceremony will be organized around the theme of 'theater' at the Sejong Center and the Arko Arts Theater."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.