The Cheonan Heungtaryung Dance Festival 2026, South Korea's largest-scale dance festival, will kick off on October 1 for a five-day run across the city of Cheonan.

Cheonan City and the Cheonan Cultural Foundation announced on the 23rd that they will operate specialized programs tailored to different genres, utilizing the Cheonan Sports Complex, downtown Shinbu-dong, and Cheonan Samgeori Park as main venues.

At the main stage of the Cheonan Sports Complex, the International Dance Competition featuring 25 teams from 24 countries will take place, alongside the preliminaries and finals for the youth and general divisions of the National Dance Competition, the largest of its kind nationwide.

Inside the indoor tennis court, the CIDC Breaking World Final featuring representatives from 16 countries and the Pump It Up World Championship, an international e-sports rhythm game competition, will be held. Additionally, on the night of the 3rd, the "DANCEFLEX: EDM Heung Night" stage will light up the main venue.

In the heart of downtown Shinbu-dong, the festival's core spectacle, the Street Dance Parade, will take place on the 2nd. Starting at 7 p.m. that day, domestic and international competing teams will stage a large-scale street march along a 550-meter section from Bangjukan Intersection to Terminal Intersection.

Prior to this at 4 p.m., the CIDC Continental Match will be held as a pre-event at the Terminal Intersection stage. A 2,000-seat viewing area will be installed for visitors, and vehicle traffic along the route will be restricted in phases for safety.

At Cheonan Samgeori Park, distinctive competitions and interactive stages will run from October 3 to 5. At the Sunken Plaza, the "Street Dance Paldo Showdown," a face-off for young dancers, and the "CIDC 1on1 World Final" will be held.

On the 4th, the "Overseas Team Parade & Neungsojeon," combining a Cheonan folktale Madanggeuk (traditional outdoor theater) with 23 overseas dance troupes, will take place along a 600-meter park circulation route. On the 5th, the children's participatory performance "Body Rhythm Escape Research Institute" and the finals of the dynamic "National University Cheerleading Competition" will be held.

To ensure visitor convenience during the festival, free shuttle buses running on four routes will operate in rotation, connecting major subway stations, bus terminals, and festival venues.

Cheonan Mayor Jang Ki-soo stated, "This year's festival has been planned as an interactive event that breaks down the boundaries between the stage and the audience, allowing visitors to directly experience and enjoy dance. We hope everyone will thoroughly enjoy the diverse charms of dance while traveling between the newly renovated Cheonan Samgeori Park, the Sports Complex, and downtown."

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