Nine South Korean performing arts works have been selected for the official “IN” program of the 80th Avignon Festival.
The festival’s organizing committee said on April 8 (local time) that nine works by seven Korean companies will be presented in the official lineup at venues across Avignon, France, from July 4 to 25.
It will be the first time Korean works have been officially invited since 1998’s “Désir d’Asie,” about 28 years ago.
A staged reading based on Han Kang’s novel “I Do Not Bid Farewell” will be performed at the Cour d’Honneur of the Palais des Papes, one of the festival’s signature venues. The production is a joint project of the Avignon Festival and the Seoul Performing Arts Festival (SPAF) and features French actor Isabelle Huppert and South Korean actor Lee Hye-young. It is also scheduled to be presented at SPAF in October.
Italian director Daria Deflorian’s new work, “The dolore terrible e l’amore,” also draws on “I Do Not Bid Farewell” and is set to premiere at the festival.
Three works by playwright Gu Ja-ha, the first Asian recipient of the International Ibsen Award, will also be staged. They include “Cuckoo” and “A History of Korean Theater,” two parts of his Hamartia trilogy, and “Haribo Kimchi.” The works were previously shown at SPAF in 2023 and 2025, respectively.
Other invited productions include the audience-participation piece “Material,” part of “Elephants Laugh” directed by Lee Jin-yeop; “Island Story” by Creative Vaki, directed by Lee Kyung-sung, set against the backdrop of the Jeju 4.3 incident; “1 Degree Celsius” by choreographer Heo Seong-im’s Heo Project on the climate crisis; “Gin: Yeonhui Deconstruction Project I” by Liquid Sound, directed by Lee In-bo, blending traditional performance with contemporary dance; and Lee Ja-ram’s “Snow, Snow, Snow,” a pansori adaptation of a Tolstoy short story.
During the festival, Arts Management Support Center will host a tentative event titled “K-Stage Rendezvous” at the Cloître Saint-Louis, the festival’s main hub. More than 50 performing arts professionals, programmers and critics from around the world are expected to attend to explore collaboration, co-production and distribution opportunities with Korean artists.
The center will also support participation in “Transmission Impossible,” a residency and training program for young artists, aimed at strengthening skills and expanding international exchange opportunities for the next generation, including university and graduate students in arts majors.
Kim Jang-ho, head of the Arts Management Support Center, said the organization will “introduce the global potential of Korean arts through collaboration across genres, including literature and visual arts,” and will work to expand international distribution of Korean performing arts through platforms such as SPAF and the Seoul Art Market (PAMS).
The festival also selected Korean as its guest language, the first time an Asian language has been chosen.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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