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Jakarta Post

Korea festival returns with a bang

Spectacular show:  Members of the world-famous Nanta, a non-verbal theater group from South Korea, perform during the Korea Festival at Lotte Shopping Avenue, Ciputra World, in Jakarta on Friday

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, October 3, 2015 Published on Oct. 3, 2015 Published on 2015-10-03T18:07:43+07:00

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Korea festival returns with a bang Spectacular show: Members of the world-famous Nanta, a non-verbal theater group from South Korea, perform during the Korea Festival at Lotte Shopping Avenue, Ciputra World, in Jakarta on Friday. (JP/Jerry Adiguna) (JP/Jerry Adiguna)

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span class="caption">Spectacular show:  Members of the world-famous Nanta, a non-verbal theater group from South Korea, perform during the Korea Festival at Lotte Shopping Avenue, Ciputra World, in Jakarta on Friday. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)

Teenagers and young adults, mostly women, screamed and chanted the names of Super Junior members Leeteuk and Kangin each time one of them smiled or waved back at them.

The hysteria at the atrium of Lotte Shopping Avenue in South Jakarta on Thursday marked the opening of Korea Festival 2015, with the two pop singers acting as the ambassadors of Hallyu (Korean Wave) for the month-long event.

The annual festival returned bigger this year, with a wider variety of events to be held not only in Jakarta but in other big cities as well.

Eight stage performers will take turns entertaining shopping mall visitors from Oct. 1 to 4 until late in the evening.

The performers are Korean B-boying Kung, all-female percussion ensemble Drum Cat and dance company Sachoom.

The internationally recognized Cookin'€™ Nanta and The Painters: Hero are among the non-verbal shows to be held at the festival.

Funny cooking show Bibap, martial art show Jump, which features comedic acts, and musical Fanta-Stick will showcase a fusion of traditional and modern art performances.

Indonesia was the first Southeast Asian country chosen by South Korea in its promotion of traditional and pop cultures.

South Korean Ambassador to Indonesia Cho Tai-young said that Indonesians topped the number of tourists to the country.

'€œThe tourists on average are teenagers and young adults passionate about K-pop. The second reason [for choosing Indonesia] is that we consider Indonesia to very open toward the cultures of other countries,'€ he said at a press conference preceding the opening of the festival.

At this year'€™s commemoration of bilateral ties between Indonesia and South Korea, the two countries also set up cooperation in the creative industry.

Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) CEO Song Sung-gak brought along 17 companies focusing on media, games and animation for the K-Roadshow with Leeteuk and Kangin as its ambassadors.

At the opening of the creative content exhibition on Thursday, the agency also held a meet and greet with popular singer Eru.

'€œWe will work with the Indonesian Creative Economy Agency to develop the creative industry,'€ he said.

The K-Roadshow, which will run until Sunday, will screen Korean animation films, game competition and many other activities.

Various Korean dishes and the creation of a 20-meter kimbab (rice roll) will be the best bits of the K-Food Festival while the K-Travel Festival presents several travel agencies offering tour packages at special prices.

The highlight of the first part of the month-long festival will be the K-Pop Festival, where 23 cover-dance teams will compete on the final stage in Sunday. The winners will take part in the final leg of the competition in South Korea in Oct. 22 against teams from other countries.

The fusion Kukak concert will be held at Usmar Ismail Hall in Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Oct. 10 and at the Indonesian University of Education (UPI) in Bandung, West Java, on Oct. 12.

Designers Kim Soo-jin and Patrick Owen will present their latest lines inspired by Korean and Indonesian cultures at the tent stage of Jakarta Fashion Week Korean Session in Senayan City on Oct. 30.

Last, but the most-awaited, is the Korea Indonesia Film Festival to be held from Oct. 28 until Nov. 1 simultaneously in Jakarta, Tangerang, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Balikpapan.

Ambassador Cho hopes Indonesians enjoy the various sides of Korean culture.

'€œI hope cultural exchange between the two countries will be more active and interesting in the future,'€ he said.

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