Seoul Performing Arts Festival to stage reading from Han Kang novel

The 26th Seoul Performing Arts Festival will begin on Oct. 6 in Seoul with 20 productions under the theme Multiverse of Art. The lineup includes a staged reading of the first chapter of Han Kang’s novel We Do Not Part, directed by Julie Deliquet and starring Isabelle Huppert and Lee Hye-young. The 18-day festival will run across major venues in the city and also feature workshops, lectures and roundtables.

The festival is organized by the Korea Arts Management Service and launched in 2001 as an international platform for contemporary theater, dance and performance.

SPAF will run for 18 days across venues including the National Theater of Korea, Arko and Daehangno Arts Theaters, Daehangno Theater Quad, Sogang University’s Mary Hall and NC Cultural Foundation’s Stage Black.

The program includes Korean premieres and new local productions such as The Third War, You Cant Make a Life out of not Getting Slapped in the Face and Welcome_2026.

La Distance is set in 2077 and follows a father on Earth and his daughter on Mars as they try to preserve their relationship across a climate-crisis-driven divide.

Oiseau had its world premiere at France’s Festival d’Avignon in July, and the French festival selected Korean as the invited language for its 80th edition this year.

Published Sep 15, 2026 4:58 pm KST

October festival brings international theater, Korean premieres, dance and interdisciplinary experiments to stages

Poster for the 26th Seoul Performing Arts Festival (SPAF) / Courtesy of SPAF

What could an opera about an imaginary war, a science fiction play about a father and daughter separated by space and a dance piece challenging ballet traditions possibly all have in common?

They are all part of the 26th Seoul Performing Arts Festival (SPAF). The festival invites audiences to put down their phones and experience art together in theaters, stepping away from the personalized digital content selected by algorithms.

Beginning on Oct. 6, the annual festival will bring 20 productions spanning theater, dance, music and interdisciplinary performances to major venues across the city under the theme “Multiverse of Art.”

“Rather than seeking a single beauty or a fixed answer, this year’s ‘Multiverse of Art’ brings together different perspectives, senses and forms of artistic creation, inviting audiences out of the isolation of individual screens and into the shared space of the theater,” artistic director Choi Kyu said at a press conference in Seoul, Tuesday.

A major highlight will be “Oiseau,” a staged reading of the first chapter of Nobel laureaute Han Kang’s novel “We Do Not Part” (2021), following its world premiere at France's Festival d'Avignon in July. Directed by Julie Deliquet, the artistic director of Paris’ Theatre Gerard Philipe, the work reunites French star Isabelle Huppert and Korean actor Lee Hye-young.

9 Korean works heading to Avignon Festival 2026

A scene from "Oiseau," a staged reading of Nobel laureate Han Kang's "We Do Not Part" with Isabelle Huppert and Lee Hye-young / Courtesy of SPAF

The French festival selected Korean as the invited language for its 80th edition this year, inviting nine Korean productions. “Oiseau" is one of five productions that are returning from Festival d'Avignon for performances in their home country.

SPAF will also present “La Distance” by Festival d’Avignon director Tiago Rodrigues. Set in 2077, the play follows a father on Earth and his daughter on Mars as they attempt to preserve their relationship across an interplanetary divide caused by a climate crisis.

Malicho Vaca Valenzuela’s “Reminiscencia,” also part of the Avignon-linked program, traces the losses and memories of revolution in Chile through a digital map detailing the lives of people in Santiago, while Riverbed Theatre’s “Blur” invites audiences into an extended-reality world where the boundaries between life, death, reality and fiction begin to dissolve.

A scene from "La Distance," a play by Tiago Rodrigues / Courtesy of SPAF

Launched in 2001 as an international platform for contemporary theater, dance and performance, SPAF seeks to connect Korean artists and audiences with global currents.

Organized by the Korea Arts Management Service, the 18-day festival will unfold across the National Theater of Korea, Arko and Daehangno Arts Theaters, Daehangno Theater Quad, Sogang University’s Mary Hall and NC Cultural Foundation’s Stage Black. Along with performances, it will host workshops, master classes, lectures and roundtables exploring artistic processes, international circulation and emerging issues in the field.

Korean premieres and new local productions will take equally prominent positions in the lineup.

“The Third War,” an opera written and directed by Park Bonn, will examine media-driven anxiety and the unstable boundaries between truth and fabrication through a fictional conflict among three nations with magic powers.

A scene from "The Third War," an opera by Park Bonn / Courtesy of SPAF

Director Koo Ja-hye’s “You Can’t Make a Life out of not Getting Slapped in the Face” will feature Saekja, one of the first openly transgender women in Korea and a veteran performer. The work focuses on her life, the overlooked histories of queer communities and state violence against sexual minorities.

The festival will also feature “Welcome_2026,” a play by 0setproject spotlighting the everyday lives of Korean families affected by social disasters and questioning the public label of “bereaved family” by presenting their varied identities, emotions and lives beyond grief.

The festival runs from Oct. 8-25. Details of the program are available here .

第26届首尔表演艺术节将于10月6日在首尔开幕，以“艺术的多元宇宙”为主题，推出20部作品。其中包括由朱莉·德利凯执导、伊莎贝尔·于佩尔和李慧英主演的韩江小说《我们不分离》第一章的朗读会。为期18天的艺术节将在首尔各大主要场馆举行，并包含工作坊、讲座和圆桌会议等活动。

该艺术节由韩国艺术管理服务公司主办，于 2001 年创办，旨在打造一个国际当代戏剧、舞蹈和表演平台。

SPAF 将在韩国国立剧院、Arko 艺术剧院、大学路艺术剧院、大学路剧院广场、西江大学玛丽厅和 NC 文化基金会的 Stage Black 等场馆举办 18 天。

节目包括韩国首映和新的本土作品，如《第三次战争》、《不被扇耳光是人生的代价》和《欢迎来到2026》。

《拉·迪斯廷斯》的故事背景设定在 2077 年，讲述了一位生活在地球上的父亲和他生活在火星上的女儿，在气候危机造成的隔阂下，努力维系彼此关系的故事。

《鸟》于 7 月在法国阿维尼翁戏剧节举行了世界首演，而今年的阿维尼翁戏剧节第 80 届则选择了韩语作为特邀语言。

发布于2026年9月15日下午4:58（韩国标准时间）

十月艺术节将国际戏剧、韩国首演、舞蹈和跨学科实验作品带到舞台上。

第26届首尔表演艺术节（SPAF）海报 / 图片由SPAF提供

一部关于虚构战争的歌剧、一部关于被太空分隔的父女的科幻剧，以及一部挑战芭蕾舞传统的舞蹈作品，它们之间究竟有什么共同之处？

它们都是第26届首尔表演艺术节（SPAF）的一部分。该艺术节邀请观众放下手机，在剧院里共同体验艺术，摆脱算法推荐的个性化数字内容。

从 10 月 6 日开始，一年一度的艺术节将以“艺术的多元宇宙”为主题，在全市各大场馆带来 20 部涵盖戏剧、舞蹈、音乐和跨学科表演的作品。

“今年的‘艺术多元宇宙’并非寻求单一的美或固定的答案，而是将不同的视角、感官和艺术创作形式融合在一起，邀请观众走出个人屏幕的孤立状态，进入剧院的共享空间，”艺术总监崔奎周二在首尔举行的新闻发布会上表示。

本次活动的一大亮点是《鸟儿》（Oiseau），这部作品将以舞台朗读的形式呈现诺贝尔文学奖得主韩江的小说《我们永不分离》（We Do Not Part，2021）的第一章，此前该作品已于7月在法国阿维尼翁戏剧节举行了全球首演。该作品由巴黎杰拉德·菲利普剧院的艺术总监朱莉·德利凯执导，并促成了法国影星伊莎贝尔·于佩尔和韩国演员李慧英的再度合作。

9部韩国作品将亮相2026年阿维尼翁戏剧节

剧照来自舞台朗读剧《鸟儿》（Oiseau），该剧改编自诺贝尔文学奖得主韩江的小说《我们永不分离》（We Do Not Part），由伊莎贝尔·于佩尔和李慧英主演 / 图片由SPAF提供

今年，法国戏剧节选择韩语作为其第80届的特邀语言，并邀请了九部韩国作品参展。《鸟》是五部从阿维尼翁戏剧节载誉归来，在其祖国上演的作品之一。

SPAF还将呈现由阿维尼翁戏剧节导演蒂亚戈·罗德里格斯执导的《距离》。该剧以2077年为背景，讲述了一位身处地球的父亲和他居住在火星的女儿，因气候危机造成的星际鸿沟，努力维系彼此关系的故事。

马利乔·瓦卡·瓦伦苏埃拉的《回忆录》也是与阿维尼翁相关的节目的一部分，它通过一张数字地图，详细描绘了圣地亚哥人民的生活，追溯了智利革命的损失和记忆；而河床剧院的《模糊》则邀请观众进入一个扩展现实的世界，在那里，生命、死亡、现实和虚构之间的界限开始消融。

蒂亚戈·罗德里格斯戏剧《距离》剧照 / 图片由SPAF提供

SPAF于2001年成立，是一个面向当代戏剧、舞蹈和表演的国际平台，旨在将韩国艺术家和观众与全球潮流联系起来。

由韩国艺术管理服务中心主办的这场为期18天的艺术节将在韩国国立剧院、阿尔科艺术剧院、大学路艺术剧院、大学路剧场广场、西江大学玛丽厅以及NC文化基金会的Stage Black等场地举行。除了演出之外，艺术节还将举办工作坊、大师班、讲座和圆桌会议，探讨艺术创作过程、国际交流以及该领域的新兴议题。

韩国首映影片和本土新制作影片将在片单中占据同等重要的位置。

由朴邦恩编剧并执导的歌剧《第三次战争》将通过三个拥有魔法力量的国家之间的虚构冲突，探讨媒体驱动的焦虑以及真相与虚构之间不稳定的界限。

朴邦恩歌剧《第三次战争》剧照 / 由SPAF提供

导演具滋惠的《不被人扇耳光，人生就无法完整》将由韩国首批公开跨性别身份的女性之一、资深表演艺术家雪子主演。该作品聚焦于她的人生经历、被忽视的酷儿群体历史以及国家对性少数群体的暴力行为。

电影节还将上演 0setproject 的戏剧《欢迎_2026》，该剧聚焦受社会灾难影响的韩国家庭的日常生活，并通过展现他们不同的身份、情感以及悲伤之外的生活，质疑“丧亲家庭”这一公共标签。

电影节将于10月8日至25日举行。节目详情请点击此处查看。