🩰 Must-See Ballet & Modern Dance News This April! ✨ - 2026.04.03 | Modern Dance / Ballet

Hello, fans who are deeply in love with ballet and modern dance! It's your Ballet Nerd editor! 🩰 Have you all been doing well, watching at least one dance video a day this week? This week is full of legendary, jaw-dropping news. I've gathered everything from news you need to prep your ticketing for, to the latest updates on our dancers advancing overseas that make our hearts swell, so keep your eyes wide open and follow along! 👀✨

🌟 The Stars of Mariinsky Are Shining! (Kimin Kim & Mincheol Jeon)

First up is news from the Mariinsky Ballet that will make our hearts race! World-class dancer Kimin Kim is coming to Korea with Switzerland's 'Béjart Ballet Lausanne (BBL)' for the first time in 15 years ^[1]! It will be held at the GS Art Center in Seoul from the 23rd to the 26th of this month, and Kimin Kim will be the first Korean dancer to take on the lead role of 'Melody' in Béjart's masterpiece 'Boléro' ^[1]. Those sessions sold out in just 5 minutes after ticket opening, so everyone must have had motors on their fingers! He says he feels like musical notes falling from deep space are moving his hands, and he's practicing at over 200%, so his form for this performance is going to be absolutely insane ^[1]!

And another welcome face, news about dancer Mincheol Jeon! The ballet prodigy who appeared on 'Finding Genius' in the past has grown up so much over 9 years and has become a first soloist at the Russian Mariinsky Ballet, one of the world's top 5 ballet companies ^[2]. He recently successfully finished his debut performance as Romeo in 'Romeo and Juliet', and it's truly making my heart majestic 😭 He says he hasn't wasted his time over the last 10 years, and his goal is to keep dancing without losing his current mindset as he prepares for his next performance ^[2]. I will definitely go see him perform live in the future!

🩰 Unmissable Stages This April!

This month is packed with performances you must see live. Right tomorrow, on April 4th, Dance Theater Shahar's original ballet 'Anne Frank' will be revived after a year at the National Theater of Korea's Haeoreum Grand Theater ^[3]. Ballerina Stephanie Kim and former Korean National Ballet dancer Minchan Jung will appear as Kitty and a German officer respectively, so you definitely have to see this combination ^[3].

This weekend in Busan, the original ballet 'Dear Ballerina' stage by the Busan Opera House Ballet, led by Artistic Director Joowon Kim, is gathering expectations ((ref:4), (ref:19)). It is said to portray the hard lives and daily stories of the dancers in the newly founded ballet company accompanied by an orchestra, so I think it will be a comforting time ^[4].

At the Daegu Culture and Arts Center, a 'Ballet with Commentary' performance featuring former Korean National Ballet dancer Minwoo Park and Busan Ballet Theater ballerina Sooyeon Choi will be held on April 9th . With commentary by Director Hyunah Park, even newbies will be able to easily fall in love with ballet .

Also, there's news that choreographer Maillot is presenting a black-and-white thriller version of 'Swan Lake' that strips away the fairy-tale fantasy and focuses entirely on the dancers' movements, so fans who like unique interpretations, please pay attention ^[6]!

🖼️ Dance Meets the Screen and Canvas

Special news where you can enjoy dance outside the theater! The 'Seoul Dance Film Festival' opens on April 17th ^[7]. The opening film is said to feature the journey of ballerino Chase Johnsey challenging himself as a ballerina and questioning gender norms ^[7].

There's also art exhibition news! At the opening exhibition of the 'Pompidou Center Hanwha' opening in June, a large stage curtain directly created by Picasso for the ballet 'Mercure' performance will be revealed for the first time in Korea ^[8]. A chance to witness the historical collaboration of art and ballet with your own eyes!

Lastly, on April 7th in Daehak-ro, a 10th-anniversary memorial event for the late critic Yonggoo Park will be held ^[9]. Here, the original ballet script 'Paldam', which he wrote by hand during his lifetime for ballerina Suejin Kang, will be revealed for the first time ^[9]. It will be a meaningful place to encounter precious materials from the history of Korean ballet.

You've all filled up your calendars, right? Let's spend this spring happily with dance too! I'll be back next week with more fun news! 💖