Gwacheon Performing Arts Festival

Three days when the lawn in front of Government Gwacheon Complex becomes an entire 'GPAF City'

If you go just 40 minutes by subway from Seoul, there is a place where the wide lawn and sports field in front of the government complex are transformed into one giant stage. This is the Gwacheon Performing Arts Festival, or GPAF for short. It began in 1997 as the World Madanggeuk Grand Festival and became Korea's first street theater festival. Now, every September, it runs for three days centered on outdoor and street performances. The 2025 festival I attended took place from Friday, September 19 to Sunday, September 21, across the lawn and sports field next to Government Gwacheon Complex. What surprised me most was the scale. More than 120,000 people visited over the three days, and in fact, by evening it was so crowded in front of the main stage that it was hard to find a spot to lay out a picnic mat.

What makes this festival interesting is that the entire venue is designed as a fictional city called 'GPAF City.' The 2025 theme was 'Time When Memory and Imagination Rise,' and the character 'Log,' who gathers citizens' memories to protect the city, appeared throughout the site. It felt less like watching individual performances and more like logging in to a city and becoming the protagonist of a story, so I found it hard to just walk past the stage, installations, and characters.

First things first — enjoy it without an admission fee, but popular shows require reservations

Let me ease your money worries first. There is no separate admission fee to move around the lawn area and watch the street performances and side events. The biggest appeal is that you can enjoy domestic and international entries, parades, and hands-on programs without any burden. However, the situation is different for large main-stage performances such as the opening and closing shows. In previous years, the closing program was reserved in advance through Naver Booking, with Gwacheon residents getting an early reservation window before general reservations opened. So if you want to see a lineup like Kim Chang-wan Band for the opening or Lee Juck, Gummy, and Crying Nut for the closing from a good seat, be sure to check the official website for that year's reservation method and opening schedule before you go. You can still enjoy it from the back of the lawn without a reservation, but the front seats fill up in an instant.

Don't worry about food. There are food zones and food trucks, and the food zone here has been using reusable containers for three years, which keeps waste down and the area tidy. Teams that won the Gwacheon City local restaurant selection contest also participated, so the menu quality was better than I expected. Most festival stalls in Korea now accept cards and mobile payments, but some small booths and flea-market stalls still take cash only, so bringing around 10,000 won in cash will make things easier.

Right on foot from Government Gwacheon Complex Station on Line 4 — for night performances, the return route is key

Transportation is one of this festival's biggest advantages. From Seoul, take Subway Line 4 and get off at Government Gwacheon Complex Station. Exits 9 and 10 are connected by an underground passage to the Gwacheon Citizens' Hall, so once you come up the stairs, you are practically right at the festival site. It is so close that you can arrive on a rainy day with just an umbrella and not get wet, without having to carry heavy luggage. Several bus routes also stop at the Government Gwacheon Complex stop, so access is easy.

I do not recommend driving. Parking around the complex and the Citizens' Hall is limited, and during the festival the roads between the Government Gwacheon Complex parking lot, the sports field, and Citizens' Plaza are restricted. In 2025, the area around the complex was closed from Friday afternoon until midnight on Sunday. So public transportation is the answer. Just keep in mind that there are many night performances. The opening and closing stages continued past 10 p.m., and the closing finale ended with a fireworks show around 9:15 p.m. I left after watching the fireworks and barely made the last subway train, so if you plan to stay until the end of the final performance, it is safer to check the Line 4 last-train time in advance.

A festival you can enjoy with your eyes even if you do not understand the language — the power of street theater

If a foreign friend asks, 'I don't speak Korean, will it still be okay?' I confidently recommend this festival. Since street theater and outdoor theater are at the center, many performances tell stories through visual language such as gestures, music, fire, and soap bubbles rather than dialogue. In fact, the 2025 stage was full of circular screens, dome-shaped bubble stages, and balloons and objects floating in the sky. They made the concept of 'Rise' immediately visible to the eye. Side programs like makeup, costume, and circus experiences are also more physical than verbal, so the barrier to entry is low for children and foreigners alike. However, detailed performance descriptions and announcements are mostly in Korean, so checking in advance on the official website whether that year's program book or app offers English guidance will make planning your route much easier.

The essentials are simple. September evenings on the lawn can get surprisingly chilly, so bring a light outer layer and, above all, a picnic mat. Good spots are designed for sitting on the grass, so people who came without a mat either stood in the back or just sat on the ground. Since it is an outdoor event, it is also good to bring a rain poncho in case of rain. Restrooms can be used in the complex and Citizens' Hall facilities, so there was no need to rush around looking for one.

Who I would recommend it to

If you want the quiet, indoor-theater style of carefully appreciating each individual performance, this festival may feel a bit crowded. On the other hand, if you want to sit on the lawn and enjoy the outdoor atmosphere from sunset to fireworks, or if you are a traveler who wants to experience art that communicates through the body even with limited Korean, this is an excellent choice. It is close enough to Seoul for a quick day trip, and you can fill an entire day without spending much money. If you are in Korea in September, take Line 4 to Gwacheon on a Friday evening. The feeling of 'logging in' to a city will likely stay with you for a long time.