By Lee Hyo-won
Staff reporter
Dance is one of the most primitive forms of expression, and honest human vigor manifests itself with raw emotion through the medium.
The 6th Busan International Dance Festival (BIDF) will kick off Friday celebrating different rhythms of the human body in open air performances on Haeundae beach, where artists will dance away the evenings between heaven, earth and the sea.
This year 127 teams from 11 countries have been invited, making it a truly global event, and they will give 779 shows through June 8. As the first local dance event to be funded by the government, several troupes from near and far have arrived to be part of BIDF’s core official program.
The opening event on Friday will feature the National Busan Korean Traditional Performing Arts Dance Company giving a slice of local tradition, along with Israel’s Inbal Pinto & Avshalom Pollak Dance Company and the Chinese Kun Dance Troupe of Nanjing Art Institute, which is expected to present ornate costumes and props inspired by cultural traditions. Estonia’s Fine 5 Theatre will also give a debut show in Korea.
Also set to perform that evening is Korea’s Ccadoo Dance Theater, which combines multimedia and other genres for a new form of performing arts. Japan’s nmatu-posu Dance Company will give a humorous performance while the Santa Barbara Dance Theater’s dancers, musicians and actors from the United States will put on a show with a twist of drama.
The Mamata Shankar Dance Company from India will appear on Saturday and Sunday to showcase their signature dances, which are creative new reinterpretations of Indian traditions. Venezuela’s Danzaluz will perform in Korea for the first time this weekend and also give a workshop for aspiring dancers on June 7.
The Dance Theatre of Ireland will give, in addition to a formal presentation on Sunday, street performances from Thursday through June 8. Russia’s award-winning contemporary troupe Olga Pona Dance Company will also perform this weekend.
Not to be missed is a special project by renowned French choreographer Yann Lheureux, who has handpicked eight dancers based in Busan to put together a new production for the festival. The BIDF Project Dance Company show will be the highlight of the event’s special closing ceremony on June 8.
``Busan should be proud to host such a spectacular dance festival with the sea as a backdrop. I’m very proud, too; it’s rare to see such an event overseas, and it is important for the festival to grow,’’ prima ballerina Kang Sue-jin told reporters in a previous press conference in Busan. The internationally feted principal dancer of the Stuttgart Ballet appeared in the 2008 BIDF and now represents the festival as its honorary ambassador.
For more information call (051) 555-2949 or visit www.bidf.or.kr.