Filipinos turn Hongdae venue into home away from home

Filipinos in Seoul gathered at Rabbit Hall in Hongdae on Sept. 26 for the venue’s first Filipino Night, which blended music, dance and karaoke into a community celebration. The event opened with a Mindanaoan Pangalay performance by Nicky Juanite and Kyle Abraham, then moved into Filipino and Korean songs, games and a Christmas singalong. Organizers and performers said the night helped Filipinos feel closer to home and connect with one another in Korea.

The event took place at Rabbit Hall, the basement live music venue at White Rabbit bistro and wine bar in Mapo District.

The show opened with Pangalay, a traditional Mindanaoan dance, performed by Nicky Juanite with Kyle Abraham.

White Rabbit owner Seung Moon Choe said a Filipino night fit the lively spirit he had seen among Filipino guests and fans.

Princess Rai, president of Pinoy Iskolars sa Korea, said the event gave students a platform to show talents often hidden by academic pressure.

Juanite said she hoped to stage a similar event for EPS Filipino workers in Korea, who she described as major workers sending remittances home.

Published Oct 3, 2026 7:00 am KST

Updated Oct 3, 2026 9:53 am KST

Organizer eyes events outside Seoul to reach Filipino diaspora in provinces

White Rabbit's Rabbit Hall live music venue in Hongdae, Seoul / Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

In western Seoul’s vibrant Hongdae neighborhood, a celebration of Filipino music and culture transformed a live music venue into a space where the community felt closer to home.

Filipinos across Seoul gathered at Rabbit Hall, the basement live music venue at White Rabbit bistro and wine bar in Mapo District on Sept. 26 for its first Filipino Night. Home to frequent open mics, the stage was set for something a bit different.

The show opened with a traditional Mindanaoan dance called “Pangalay,” performed by Filipino artist Nicky Juanite , the brains behind the event, accompanied by Kyle Abraham , a Filipino American dancer and choreographer.

“We wanted to bless this space before we start the show,” Juanite said after the opening performance that set the tone for the evening.

What followed was a quintessentially Filipino sight — and sound. Performers treated the audience to English and Tagalog karaoke favorites, as well as Korean ballad songs. The audience, as one may expect from a typical karaoke session in the Philippines, sang the lyrics right back with as much volume and soul as the performers on stage.

Filipino singer and songwriter Nicky Juanite performs "It Had To Be You," a song she wrote and dedicated to Filipinos who left behind family and friends to work in Korea, during the first Filipino Night at White Rabbit's live music venue in Hongdae, Seoul, Sept. 26. Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

For White Rabbit owner Seung Moon Choe, or Moon, a night centered on Filipino talent was bound to be fun.

“I already knew they know how to enjoy their lives. That’s what I really admire about the Filipino people,” he told The Korea Times.

He recalled an experience of attending a K-pop concert in the Philippines, where fans are known to be among the most passionate and liveliest.

“I think this event was one of the best in my opinion, and I knew that already because I went to many K-pop concerts here and there, and then when I went to Bulacan … it was a totally different vibe,” he said, referring to a Philippine province that is home to one of the biggest concert venues in the country.

“That’s why I already knew they would have lots of fun here. No surprise to me,” he added.

In true Filipino fashion, the event was peppered with local references that drew laughter from the audience, fostering a closeness even among those who met for the first time that night.

At one point, an impromptu round of a popular game played at Filipino gatherings and children’s parties offered both comic relief and nostalgia. Dubbed locally as the “longest breath game,” it tests even the strongest lungs, with contestants asked to say a phrase in one, continuous breath.

Audience members participate in an impromptu round of a popular children's party game from the Philippines during the first Filipino Night at White Rabbit's live music venue in Hongdae, Seoul, Sept. 26. Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

Another uniquely Filipino moment came during a short lull before magician Kim Ji-wan closed the event, when the venue was suddenly filled with a Christmas song singalong, recreating the holiday atmosphere that comes months early back home.

Considered to be the world's longest, the Christmas season in the Philippines, where the majority of the population is Catholic, spans what is locally called the “ber months” — from September through December.

“It’s always Christmas when you’re with Filipinos,” one of the hosts quipped.

Professional magician Kim Ji-wan, a former contestant of "Pilipinas Got Talent" who grew up in the Philippines, thanks the audience as he finishes his set as the last performer for the Filipino Night at White Rabbit's live music venue in Hongdae, Seoul, Sept. 26. Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

For Princess Rai, president of Pinoy Iskolars sa Korea , the event offered an opportunity for students to showcase their talents, which would otherwise remain untapped due to the demands of schoolwork.

“One of the trademarks of being a Filipino is the artistry. We have all these fresh talents that we barely see because we’re overwhelmed with academics,” she told The Korea Times.

“I think this was a very great platform to showcase our talent and also bring a sense of community to our members and also nonmembers, of course. We had foreigners as well who came and saw the performances,” Rai added.

Filipino connections

Juanite, who has led numerous events not only at Rabbit Hall but at several other locations for independent artists across Seoul, felt the need to hold one to celebrate her own community.

“I’ve been doing it all for different expats, different nationalities and different embassies, and I’m like ‘I haven’t done anything for Filipinos yet,’” she said.

“I looked at the followers of White Rabbit, there’s a lot of Filipinos and every time I’m here, I hear Filipinos laughing, enjoying their meal. I wanted to do something for Filipinos. It’s also been a project that I’ve always wanted to do for a long time,” she added.

When Juanite approached Moon about her idea, the White Rabbit owner was quick to give the go-signal.

“I loved that idea, so we did it. Sure enough, there was so much fun,” he said.

Beyond what Moon knew about the lively Filipino spirit is a previous personal connection that was revived 20 years later, when he posted about the event on social media.

“When my children were young, we had a nanny. She's from the Philippines. When I posted this event on Instagram, for the first time, she messaged me. I didn’t know who she was. And then, she called me by my old English name, which only a few know. So I checked her profile and sure enough, she was our nanny. I said hello to her,” he said.

“So somehow, I got kind of a good relationship with the people from the Philippines. From last year also, we started to get a lot of guests from the Philippines,” he added, pointing to a wall of magnets inside the building’s first-floor restaurant, half of which were from the Philippines.

A magnet from the Philippines is displayed among others on a wall inside White Rabbit's first-floor restaurant in Hongdae, Seoul. Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

More events in, outside Seoul

Juanite said she hopes to hold a similar event to celebrate the stories of Filipino workers in Korea.

“I‘m really inspired tonight, I want to create another one. I’m excited to reach out to our EPS Filipino workers,” she said, referring to Filipinos working in Korea under a government-to-government employment permit system for industries like agriculture, fishing and manufacturing.

“They’re the main hard workers here, the people sending remittances back to our country ... I would love to have time in the future to create an event for them as well,” she added.

Sem Pabion, a Filipino filmmaker whose works have been featured in festivals in Busan, China and the U.K., saw the event not only as a way to pull the Filipino community closer together but also as a platform to showcase Filipino talent beyond singing.

Pabion was among the featured Filipinos for the event, where his film was scheduled for screening. A technical issue, however, led to an unplanned performance in which he sang one of the crowd favorites of the night.

“This is an amazing night and I hope the second installment, I hope all of my films will be shown here so that they will be introduced to the Filipino audience, not just through the festivals I’ve been a part of,” he told The Korea Times.

Performers for the first Filipino Night at White Rabbit's live music venue pose as the event wraps up in Hongdae, Seoul, Sept. 26. Back row from left: Sem Pabion, Nicky Juanite, Kyle Abraham, Gia dela Cruz, Dianne Clare Barral and Jherain Pajares. Center row from left: Aya Nacionales, Martha Lumungsod and Jedney Flores. Front row from left: Jhung Min and Luke Mariano. Korea Times photo by Christia Ramos

“I would like to believe that my films are for a global audience but also, of course ... I would love to have the opportunity to show it to Filipino audiences and I think the Filipino Night here at White Rabbit will be a great platform for that,” Pabion said.

The night ended on an energetic note, with strangers exchanging contact details and old friends looking to continue catching up through another round of drinks.

But underneath the lively sound coming from the basement venue, lies a deeper longing for something familiar.

“There’s a lot of Filipinos who miss their family … So in hard times ... we could celebrate each other as a family. That’s how the Filipino Night came to be,” Juanite said.

“Nights like this, for me, are very important because we get to be together as a community. It’s very hard … to go to a foreign country and have no sense of community. But here, sharing the same music, the same talent is such a great way for us to build our community even here,” Aya Nacionales, a graduate student and one of the night's performers, told The Korea Times.

As Korea wrapped up Chuseok festivities, Filipinos celebrated in a way most familiar to them: singing along to karaoke favorites, meeting strangers who will eventually become friends and sharing laughter with people who make the miles away from home feel shorter.

9月26日，在首尔弘大的Rabbit Hall举办了首届菲律宾之夜活动，众多菲律宾侨民齐聚一堂。这场融合了音乐、舞蹈和卡拉OK的社区庆祝活动精彩纷呈。活动以Nicky Juanite和Kyle Abraham带来的棉兰老岛传统民歌Pangalay开场，随后穿插了菲律宾语和韩语歌曲、游戏以及圣诞颂歌大合唱。组织者和表演者表示，这场活动让身在韩国的菲律宾人感受到了家乡的温暖，也增进了彼此之间的联系。

活动在麻坡区白兔酒馆地下的现场音乐演出场地兔厅举行。

演出以棉兰老岛传统舞蹈 Pangalay 开场，由 Nicky Juanite 和 Kyle Abraham 表演。

白兔餐厅老板崔承文表示，菲律宾之夜很符合他在菲律宾客人和粉丝身上看到的活泼精神。

菲律宾留学生协会主席 Princess Rai 表示，该活动为学生提供了一个平台，让他们能够展示那些常常因学业压力而被掩盖的才华。

胡安妮特表示，她希望为在韩国工作的 EPS 菲律宾工人举办类似的活动，她称这些工人是向家乡汇款的主要群体。

发布于2026年10月3日 上午7:00（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月3日上午9:53（韩国标准时间）

主办方计划在首尔以外地区举办活动，以接触菲律宾侨民。

首尔弘大白兔音乐厅 Rabbit Hall 现场音乐演出场地 / 韩国时报 Christia Ramos 摄

在首尔西部充满活力的弘大街区，一场菲律宾音乐和文化的庆祝活动将一个现场音乐场所变成了一个让社区居民感到更像家的地方。

9月26日，首尔各地的菲律宾人齐聚麻浦区白兔酒馆地下音乐厅Rabbit Hall，参加首届菲律宾之夜活动。Rabbit Hall经常举办开放麦表演，而这次的活动则别具一格。

演出以名为“Pangalay”的传统棉兰老岛舞蹈开场，由菲律宾艺术家尼基·胡安尼特（Nicky Juanite）表演，他是本次活动的策划者，伴舞的是菲律宾裔美国舞蹈家兼编舞家凯尔·亚伯拉罕（Kyle Abraham）。

“我们想在演出开始前为这个场地祈福，”胡安妮特在开场表演结束后说道，这场表演为当晚的演出定下了基调。

接下来呈现的是一场极具菲律宾特色的视听盛宴。表演者们为观众献上了英语和塔加洛语的卡拉OK金曲，以及韩语情歌。正如人们在菲律宾典型的卡拉OK场景中所预料的那样，观众们也热情地跟着台上歌手一起高歌，音量和投入程度丝毫不逊色。

9月26日，在首尔弘大White Rabbit音乐厅举行的首届菲律宾之夜活动上，菲律宾歌手兼词曲作家妮基·胡安妮特（Nicky Juanite）演唱了她创作并献给那些为了在韩国工作而离开家人和朋友的菲律宾人的歌曲《非你莫属》（It Had To Be You）。（韩国时报摄影师克里斯蒂亚·拉莫斯摄）

对于 White Rabbit 的老板 Seung Moon Choe（简称 Moon）来说，以菲律宾才艺为主题的夜晚注定会充满乐趣。

“我早就知道他们懂得享受生活。这正是我非常欣赏菲律宾人民的地方，”他告诉《韩国时报》。

他回忆起在菲律宾参加K-pop演唱会的经历，那里的粉丝以热情奔放著称。

“我认为这场活动是我参加过的最棒的活动之一，我之前就经常去韩国参加K-pop演唱会，所以早就知道这一点。后来我去布拉干……感觉完全不一样，”他说道，他指的是菲律宾的一个省份，那里拥有该国最大的演唱会场地之一。

“所以我早就知道他们在这里会玩得很开心。这对我来说毫不意外，”他补充道。

这场活动充满了菲律宾特色，穿插着许多当地梗，引得观众哈哈大笑，也让当晚初次见面的人们之间更加亲近。

期间，大家即兴玩起了菲律宾人聚会和儿童派对上流行的游戏，既带来了欢笑，也唤起了人们的怀旧之情。这个游戏在当地被称为“最长呼吸游戏”，即使是肺活量最大的人也会被它考验，参赛者需要一口气说完一句话。

9月26日，在首尔弘大White Rabbit音乐厅举办的首届菲律宾之夜活动中，观众们即兴参与了一轮源自菲律宾的流行儿童派对游戏。韩国时报摄影师Christia Ramos摄

另一个极具菲律宾特色的时刻出现在魔术师金智完结束表演前的短暂平静中，当时整个场地突然响起了圣诞歌曲大合唱，重现了菲律宾提前数月到来的节日氛围。

菲律宾的圣诞节被认为是世界上最长的，该国大部分人口信奉天主教，圣诞节从九月持续到十二月，当地人称之为“ber months”。

“和菲律宾人在一起，每天都像过圣诞节一样，”其中一位主持人打趣道。

9月26日，在首尔弘大White Rabbit夜总会举行的“菲律宾之夜”活动中，曾参加过“菲律宾达人秀”的职业魔术师金智完（音译）作为压轴表演嘉宾，在演出结束后向观众致谢。照片由《韩国时报》克里斯蒂亚·拉莫斯拍摄。

对于菲律宾韩国学生协会主席 Princess Rai 来说，此次活动为学生们提供了一个展示才华的机会，否则由于繁重的学业，他们的才华将无法得到充分发挥。

“菲律宾人的一大特色就是艺术天赋。我们有很多才华横溢的新人，但我们却很少看到他们，因为我们都被学术压力压得喘不过气来，”她告诉《韩国时报》。

“我认为这是一个非常好的平台，可以展示我们的才华，也能为我们的成员以及非成员带来社区归属感。当然，也有一些外国朋友前来观看演出，”Rai补充道。

菲律宾人脉

Juanite 不仅在 Rabbit Hall，还在首尔其他几个地方为独立艺术家举办过许多活动，她觉得有必要举办一场活动来庆祝她自己的社群。

“我一直在为不同的外籍人士、不同国籍的人和不同的大使馆做各种事情，但我却觉得‘我还没有为菲律宾人做过任何事’，”她说。

“我看了看白兔餐厅的顾客，发现有很多菲律宾人。每次我来这里，都能听到菲律宾人欢声笑语，享受美食。我想为菲律宾人做点什么。这也是我一直以来都想做的一件事，”她补充道。

当胡安妮特向月亮提出她的想法时，白兔餐厅的老板很快就表示同意了。

“我非常喜欢这个主意，所以我们就这么做了。果然，非常有趣，”他说。

除了对菲律宾人热情奔放的精神有所了解之外，文鲜明还与菲律宾人有过一段私人渊源，这段渊源在20年后被重新唤起，当时他在社交媒体上发布了有关此事的帖子。

“孩子们小时候，我们请了一位保姆，她来自菲律宾。我在Instagram上发布了这件事之后，她第一次给我发了消息。我当时并不知道她是谁。然后，她叫出了我以前的英文名字，这个名字只有少数人知道。于是我查看了她的个人资料，果然，她就是我们的保姆。我跟她打了招呼，”他说。

“所以不知怎么的，我和菲律宾人建立了相当不错的关系。从去年开始，我们也开始接待很多来自菲律宾的客人，”他补充道，同时指着大楼一楼餐厅内的一面磁铁墙，其中一半来自菲律宾。

在首尔弘大White Rabbit餐厅一楼的墙上，陈列着包括一块来自菲律宾的冰箱贴在内的许多装饰品。（韩国时报 Christia Ramos 摄）

首尔市内外更多活动

胡安妮特表示，她希望举办类似的活动，来讲述在韩国工作的菲律宾工人的故事。

“我今晚真的很有灵感，我想再创作一个。我很兴奋能与我们的EPS菲律宾工人交流，”她说道，她指的是根据政府间就业许可制度在韩国工作的菲律宾人，这些工人从事农业、渔业和制造业等行业。

“他们是这里的主要劳动者，是他们把钱寄回我们的国家……我希望将来能有时间也为他们举办一个活动，”她补充道。

菲律宾电影制作人 Sem Pabion 的作品曾在釜山、中国和英国的电影节上展映。他认为此次活动不仅是拉近菲律宾社区距离的一种方式，也是展示菲律宾人在歌唱之外的其他才能的平台。

帕比昂是此次活动的特邀菲律宾嘉宾之一，他的电影原定在活动中放映。然而，由于技术故障，他临时决定进行表演，演唱了当晚最受观众喜爱的歌曲之一。

“这是一个令人惊叹的夜晚，我希望第二部，我希望我的所有电影都能在这里放映，这样它们就能被介绍给菲律宾观众，而不仅仅是通过我参加过的电影节，”他告诉《韩国时报》。

9月26日，在首尔弘大White Rabbit夜总会举办的首届菲律宾之夜活动结束后，表演者们合影留念。后排从左至右：Sem Pabion、Nicky Juanite、Kyle Abraham、Gia dela Cruz、Dianne Clare Barral和Jherain Pajares。中排从左至右：Aya Nacionales、Martha Lumungsod和Jedney Flores。前排从左至右：Jhung Min和Luke Mariano。照片由《韩国时报》Christia Ramos拍摄。

“我希望我的电影能够面向全球观众，当然……我也非常希望有机会将电影放映给菲律宾观众观看，我认为在白兔影院举办的菲律宾之夜将是一个很好的平台，”帕比昂说道。

当晚气氛活跃，陌生人互相交换联系方式，老朋友们则希望再喝一轮继续叙旧。

但在这从地下室传出的热闹声响之下，却隐藏着对熟悉事物的更深切的渴望。

“很多菲律宾人都很想念家人……所以在艰难时期……我们可以像家人一样互相庆祝。这就是菲律宾之夜的由来，”胡安妮特说道。

“对我来说，像这样的夜晚非常重要，因为我们可以作为一个社群聚在一起。去到一个陌生的国家，却找不到归属感，这真的很难……但在这里，分享同样的音乐，同样的才华，即使在这里，也是我们建立社群的绝佳方式，”研究生兼当晚表演者之一的阿雅·纳西奥纳莱斯告诉《韩国时报》。

韩国中秋节庆祝活动落下帷幕之际，菲律宾人以他们最熟悉的方式庆祝：唱卡拉OK，结识最终会成为朋友的陌生人，与那些让远离家乡的人们分享欢笑。