FINA World Championships closing ceremony to feature wonders of Korean four seasons
The closing ceremony, wrapping upthe 17-day global aquatics festival that opened in Gwangju on July 12, willconsist of two parts -- a one-hour cultural performance set to begin at 5 p.m.at the Asia Culture Center and the official event scheduled to begin at 10:40p.m. at the Nambu University Municipal Aquatics Center.
The cultural performance will feature thecharacteristic of water circulating in nature and the southern region'sseasonal wonders and human life cycles under the theme «Circle ofLife.»
Taking a cue from the atmosphereand tastes of four seasons expressed in «Song of Mount Seongsan,» anancient poem, the performance will display the life of a traditional singeragainst the backdrop of spring, summer, fall and winter landscapes.
Members of the Gwangju City Balletand other artists born in the city or living in the southwestern province willtake part in the performance. The spring scene will feature Nam Mi-sun, afamous «haeseum» (two-stringed fiddle) player who was born in Gwangjuin 1980, while Lee So-yeon, who will appear in the fall scene, is a member ofthe National Changgeuk Co. of Korea and starred in the musical«Seopyeonje.»
Two children who will perform in the spring and summerscenes were selected through an audition.
A performance by South Korea'srenowned «pansori» singer Ahn Sook-sun in the winter scene willlikely be the highlight of the cultural performance. Electric guitarist YangJi-wan plans to put on a joint performance with the pansori singer. Theperformance will be directed by Korean dance expert Guk Su-ho, Choi Tae-ji,head of the Gwangju City Ballet, and lighting director Lee Sang-bong.
The official event, slated to takeplace for 30 minutes at the Nambu University Municipal Aquatics Center, willinclude the entry of the national flags of the participating countries,lowering and transfering of the championships flag, introduction of the nexthost city and declaration of closure. The next FINA World Championships willtake place in Fukuoka, Japan, in 2021.