Waves of Korean Contemporary Dance
Presented by Korean Cultural Center New York & White Wave Young Soon Kim Dance Company
Friday, October 9 & Saturday, October 10, 2026 at 7:30 PM
Korean Cultural Center New York
(122 E 32nd Street, New York, NY 10016)
Admission: FREE (Pre-registration is Required)
* RSVP and seating are on a first-come, first-served basis.
* Limited same-day standby tickets will be available.
* Cancellations must be made at least 48 hours in advance.
CONTENT ADVISORY
This performance contains scenes involving nudity as part of its artistic expression. Audience discretion is advised.
Waves of Korean Contemporary Dance brings together three distinct voices in contemporary dance, presenting works by WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company, Andamiro Art Company, and choreographer Lee Dongha.
Spanning different generations, artistic perspectives, and approaches to movement, the program explores the diverse possibilities of Korean contemporary dance. From narrative-driven choreography and dynamic physical expression to works inspired by history, society, and human experience, the three works offer audiences an opportunity to encounter the evolving language of Korean contemporary dance.
Presented by the Korean Cultural Center New York and WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company, the program reflects KCCNY’s ongoing efforts to introduce the breadth and vitality of Korean performing arts to New York audiences and to create a space where established and emerging artists can share their distinct artistic perspectives on one stage. Together, the works highlight the continuing development of Korean contemporary dance and the diverse voices shaping its future.
PROGRAM
MOON - ANDAMIRO ART COMPANY (approx. 25 mins)
GERNICA AGAIN - DONGHA LEE (approx. 25 mins)
INTERMISSION (10 mins)
Here NOW So Long - WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company (approx. 40 mins)
MOON
Andamiro Art Company
<MOON> is a storytelling-based contemporary dance work that follows the Andamiro Expedition as they set out to find a legendary door said to be hidden somewhere inside the moon and capable of granting wishes.
The Korean title Mun carries multiple meanings: moon, door, gateway, and question. Each member of the expedition has a distinct personality, and together they take on new challenges as they pass through unpredictable worlds and unfamiliar gateways in search of the legendary door. At times, they lose their way or feel discouraged, but by overcoming moments that would be difficult to face alone, they gradually grow together.
Through vivid characters and dynamic movement, MOON captures the excitement and playfulness of adventure. It tells a warm story about growing through challenge and adventure, and about how even the most difficult journey can ultimately be completed when undertaken together.
For its New York presentation, the original 60-minute full-length production for ten dancers has been adapted into a 25-minute version performed by three dancers. By condensing the work’s central narrative and key scenes, this adaptation presents the expedition’s adventurous journey in search of the legendary door.
Choreography: Kim Junghwan
Performers: Kim Jieun, Moon Hyerin, Park Sojeong
Guernica Again
Lee Dongha
<Guernica Again> is a motif of Picasso’s original ’Guernica’ which was the background of Nazi’s indiscriminate bombing of civilians. The choreographer deals with the violence and feelings that penetrates history and events within the frame of the theory that similar events in the past and present repeat parallelism.
Historical events of Picasso’s views on the victims by the era of ‘Guernica’, Comfort Women, ‘Cheonanham accident’ and ‘the sinking of Sewol ferry’. These theme with the choreographer’s eyes are deal with the death of civilians and essential themes of life. The choreographer will present a narrative led by a strong life force struggling from constraints and violence in memory of those who have suffered indiscriminately in their time through the Guernica Again repertoire. <Guernica Again> has been published in two versions, the 16member group piece and the solo version.
Choreography & Performer: Lee Dongha
Here NOW So Long
WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company
<Here NOW So Long> is utterly compelling multimedia dance-theater work marked by remarkable versatility and choreographic virtuosity of Young Soon Kim. Here NOW So Long explores the turbulence of human emotion through 12 vivid scenes, weaving together panoramic video imagery, a live performance of an original score of guitars and electronics, and the fluid, dramatic movement of WHITE WAVE’s stunning dancers. The work extends and breaks the boundaries of contemporary dance with themes of love, longing, and inner conflict.
photo by Christopher Duggan
The production continues WHITE WAVE’s longstanding collaboration with a team of singularly innovative artists: an original score by Marco Cappelli, visuals by Justin Dormitzer, and dramaturgy by James Leverett, former Yale professor. Artistic Director Young Soon Kim creates a movement language that reveres tradition while embracing innovation, reaching into the inner landscapes of imagination, passion, and spirit to generate new expressions of contemporary dance.
Production Credits
Choreographed & Directed by Young Soon Kim
Original Music Marco Cappelli (live)
Other Music Sam Crawford & Zeb Gould
Production Manager Yuriy Nayer
Lighting Design Micah Dominguez-Schatz
Original Video Design David Tirosh
Projection/Video Design Justin Dormitzer
Dramaturgy James Leverett
Costume Coordination Young Soon Kim
Dancers Michael Bishop, Kaylan Bradford, John Crim, Benjamin De Andrade, Bella Donatelli, Soomin Eum, Sumire Ishige, Shujung Kim, Juan David Viveros
Rehearsal Director Mark Willis
Participating Companies
WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company
Founded in 1988, WHITE WAVE has expanded the boundaries of dance through collaborations across music, poetry, and visual media. Led by Artistic Director Young Soon Kim, the company has presented work at venues including the National Theater of Seoul, BAM Fisher, La MaMa Moves!, and New York's SummerStage, and received the 2023 Bessies Angel Honoree Award.
For more information about WHITE WAVE Young Soon Kim Dance Company, please visit their website or Instagram
Andamiro Art Company
Andamiro (Korean for "filled abundantly to overflowing") combines contemporary dance with clear storytelling to make the form more accessible, offering empathy and meaningful experience across generations. Repertoire includes The Burden: Class Society, MOON, TOP, REST…, Human Factory, HOME, The Value of Togetherness, The Man Who Reads Books, and That Is Love.
For more information about Andamiro Art Company, please visit their website or Instagram
Lee Dongha
A choreographer focused on instinctive expression and natural movement, transforming everyday life into dance that engages contemporary social issues. Representative works include go, Guernica Again, Golconde, Fall into Love, Become Alone, Relationship, Marriage, Empty Hero, The Treachery of Images, and Brutal Entertainment. Honors include the Grand Prize at the Critics' Choice for Young Choreographers (2017), Artist of the Year from the Korea Contemporary Dance Association (2019), and the Grand Prix at the Seoul International Choreography Festival (2023).
For more information about Lee Dongha, please visit their Instagram or Youtube.
Choreographer Profiles
Kim Young Soon
photo by Martin Seymore
Kim Young Soon, Artistic Director of WHITE WAVE Dance, is an internationally acclaimed choreographer and recipient of the 2023 Bessies Angel Honoree Award. Over a vibrant 40-year career, she has become known for work that is exhilarating, visually stunning, and emotionally resonant, distinguished by sweeping movement, sculptural imagery, and deeply human storytelling. A former performer with Jennifer Muller/The Works, Kim toured internationally before establishing her own artistic practice. In 2001, she inaugurated the WHITE WAVE John Ryan Theater in DUMBO, Brooklyn, and launched a series of dance festivals that have become important platforms for emerging and established choreographers.
Kim’s choreography and WHITE WAVE Dance have been presented at major festivals and venues worldwide, including La MaMa, BAM Fisher, Vancouver International Dance Festival, and festivals across Asia, Europe, and North America. WHITE WAVE was selected for the 2013–14 BAM Professional Development Program, culminating in the premiere of Eternal NOW at BAM Fisher. Her work has been featured by Smithsonian/PBS and CNN, and in 2021 she became the first artist working outside Korea to be profiled in ARKO’s Modern and Contemporary Art History Research Series. Her recent film iyouuswe II has received international recognition at festivals including Cannes, London, Paris, Vancouver, and Espoo.
Kim Junghwan
Kim Junghwan is the Artistic Director and Choreographer of Andamiro Art Company. His work explores contemporary themes through dynamic movement and distinctive choreographic perspectives. He has received numerous awards, including the Young Artist Award at the Dance Arts Awards (2019), the Repertoire of the Year Award from the 21st Century Contemporary Dance Association (2019), the Silver Award and Chairperson’s Award at the National Dance Festival of Korea (2023), and the Sejong Culture and Arts Grand Award (2026).
His selected choreographic works include The Burden: Class Society, MOON, TOP, REST…, Human Factory, HOME, The Value of Togetherness, The Man Who Reads Books, and That Is Love. Through his work with Andamiro Art Company, Kim continues to develop a distinctive choreographic language while actively contributing to the contemporary dance scene in Korea.
Lee Dongha
Choreographer Lee Dongha pursues instinctive expression through natural movements rooted in everyday life, exploring contemporary social issues from diverse perspectives. Drawing inspiration from current events, media, and personal observations, he transforms these references into distinctive movement vocabularies that reflect both his artistic perspective and the social atmosphere of the time. His representative works include go, Guernica Again, Golconde, Fall into Love, Become Alone, Relationship, Marriage, Empty Hero, The Treachery of Images, and Brutal Entertainment.
Lee has received numerous prestigious awards, including the Grand Prize at the Critics’ Choice for Young Choreographers (2017), Grand Prize at the AK21 International Choreographer Development Program (2019), Artist of the Year Award from the Korea Contemporary Dance Association (2019), Grand Prize at the Seoul Dance Festival (2021), and Grand Prix at the Seoul International Choreography Festival (2023). His works have been invited to festivals and venues in Spain, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, and Finland, expanding his artistic activities both in Korea and internationally.