CreatripTeam

Seoul City Dance Company presents “Mimesis,” a modern reinterpretation of eight traditional Korean dances, at Sejong Center’s M Theater from Nov 6–9. All 2,000 seats sold out. Lead dancers Choi Tae-heon and Lee Ro-woon (Iroun) say the production grounds itself in tradition while infusing contemporary sensibilities, linking each dance to natural elements: water (gyobangmu), wind (hanrangmu), earth (sogochum), lightning (janggummu), void/air (salpuri), uplifting force (seungmu), fire (mudangchum), and light (taepyeongmu). Iroun drew on scarce sources to imagine a Hwanghae-region shaman dance (mudangchum) as a commanding, martial figure, while Choi reworks hanrangmu (a leisurely nobleman’s dance) with restrained power and refined rhythm—taking playful inspiration from a scene in the Netflix animation "K-pop Demon Hunters". Both emphasize the ‘‘aesthetics of restraint’’ unique to traditional Korean dance, contrasting it with recent street dance trends. The company invites audiences to feel the living breath of these dances through subtle, nature-inspired movement and disciplined emotional layering.