FOREWORD

In October 2018, Circostrada embarked a dozen of its members to Seoul (South Korea) for a one-week research trip to explore circus and street arts and gain a better understanding of their ecosystem. This field exploration followed a first research trip to Japan, organized in December 2016 with the complicity of Setouchy Circus Factory, and a second one held in Ethiopia, in partnership with Fekat Circus, in February-March 2018.

This research trip took place from 4th to 10th October 2018, in the frame of the Seoul Street Arts Festival–the largest street arts festival in Korea–and the Performing Arts Market Seoul (PAMS), which hosted a European focus on the occasion, organized in close relation and with the support of the European Commission. This focus gathered key European networks and platforms from the sectors, among which: the IETM, In SITU, CircusNext, On the Move, European Dancehouse, European Theatre Convention, and Circostrada.

The programme included key professional meetings with local stakeholders – Korean artists, organisations, cultural operators–visits of central venues dedicated to circus and street arts, various showcases, a dense artistic programme, some qualitative networking time, and many other parallel cultural activities, all set up with a view of grasping the stakes of performing arts in Korea, creating bonds with the main players of the field, and expanding the network’s understanding, vision and connections of these art forms.

This publication aims to render the learnings from this research trip, by sharing the knowledge, experience and resources acquired throughout this one-week immersion in another culture, on the traces of Korean circus and street arts.

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