KOREA FOUNDATION

The KF held Korea Festivals in both Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo in May, introducing traditional Korean dances to African audiences in cooperation with the Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Dance Company and the Korean embassies in the two countries. In Tanzania the performance was held at the Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre in Dar es Salaam on May 16, and in DR Congo the event was held at the National Assembly in Kinshasa on May 19. The festival was part of the KF’s 2017 push to hold various events highlighting Korean culture in Africa, Russia, and the Middle East. The program featured performances, exhibitions, and academic gatherings.
  The Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Dance Company wowed African audiences with their renditions of “Mokkwanhullyeong-mu,” a group dance inspired by the military; “Gaptori and Gapsuni,” a reinterpretation of a folktale in the form of pantomime and dance; a parrot dance; and finally a creative dance with the theme of haenyeo, the female divers indigenous to Jeju Island. Jeju’s haenyeo culture is included on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
  Hoping to build upon the contribution the May festivals made to enhancing the understanding of traditional Korean culture on the African continent, the KF will continue to bring Korea Festivals to the world in the months ahead.