The productions that you need to watch in 2026

The Korea JoongAng Daily compiled a chronological list of its recommended productions — including anticipated musicals, plays, contemporary dance performances and classical concerts — slated for Seoul stages next year.

A scene from the ″Granny Poetry Club″ [LIVE CONTENTS GROUP]

From January openings to year-end runs, Seoul already has a dense schedule on the books for 2026.

The Korea JoongAng Daily compiled a chronological list of its recommended productions — including anticipated musicals, plays, contemporary dance performances and classical concerts — slated for Seoul stages in the new year.

First half of 2026

Musical “Spirited Away” — Jan. 7–March 22, Seoul Arts Center The original touring production of the stage musical — directed by John Caird and based on Hayao Miyazaki’s animated classic — features mesmerizing puppetry and Joe Hisaishi’s renowned music.

“Musical Arang” — Jan. 27–Feb. 22, National Theater of Korea

One of the most anticipated titles of the season, “Arang” is based on an ancient Korean legend about a king who falls in love with a woman from his dream and tries to search for her and make her his in reality. The story spirals into one of desire, violence, love and loss. This rendition infuses changgeuk (traditional Korean opera) genre with contemporary sounds, and uses pansori (traditional Korean music) performers and a stage design inspired by ink wash.

Classical Dresden Staatskapelle with Chung Myung-whun & Lim Yun-chan — Feb. 1, Seoul Arts Center Conductor Chung Myung-whun and pianist Lim Yunchan join one of the world's oldest orchestras for a concert at the Seoul Arts Center.

A scene from "Boheoja: The One of Paces the Void," staged at the National Theater of Korea in Jung District, central Seoul, on March 15, 2025. [NATIONAL THEATER OF KOREA]

Chagguek “Boheoja: The One Who Paces the Void” — March 19-29, Daloreum Theater This changgeuk, or a Korean opera, is set 27 years after the Gyeyujeongnan purge, a political coup during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). “Boheoja” reframes the royal tragedy through the eyes of those left in history’s shadows. Poetic storytelling and a score that blends tradition and modernity highlight the grief surrounding a lost dream of utopia.

Musical “Lempicka” — March 21-June 21, NOL Theater Coex The Broadway musical is inspired by the life of Tamara de Lempicka, an Art Deco painter who reinvented herself in 1920s Paris after she and her husband Tadeusz flee the upheaval of the Russian Revolution. Directed by Rachel Chavkin, known for the Tony-winning productions “Hadestown” and “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812,” “Lempicka” quickly earned recognition for its artistic ambition and received three nominations at the 77th Tony Awards in 2024.

A promotional photo of the Natioanl TheaSammaekyung [NATIONAL THEATER COMPANY OF KOREA]

Play “Sammaekyung” — March 30-April 5, Myeongdong Theater “Sammaekyung” is a drama that incorporates Ham Se-deok’s 1939 play “Dongsung,” which translates to “Little Monk,” and tells a story about a dying actor who wakes up 34 years in the past in a rehearsal room. He becomes determined to redo a performance that was critically acclaimed but refuses to stop haunting him. Shifting between the past and present, the play explores remorse and the very human obsession with “getting it finally right.”

Play “Big Mother” — March 30–April 26, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts The critically acclaimed 2023 French play is about mass manipulation in the age of big data.

Opera “Nabucco” — April 9–12, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts Back on a major stage for the first time in 40 years since its 1986 Korean premiere, the opera depicts a sweeping power struggle and stars renowned Korean vocalists Yang Joon-mo, Seo Sun-young and Jeon Seung-hyun.

Dance show “Speed” — May 1–3, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre’s sellout show, which has been praised for its compelling interplay of tension and release, returns on a larger scale.

Members of the Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre perform ″Speed″ at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 24. [NEWS1]

Dance show “In the Bamboo Forest” — May 15–17, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts The new show by the Seoul Metropolitan Ballet fuses contemporary ballet with Korean sounds.

Play “Granny Poetry Club” — May 15–June 28, Haneul Round Theater Based on a true story of grandmothers who learned hangul and began writing poetry after they were 80 years old, this heartwarming musical has been nominated for eight categories at the upcoming 2026 Korea Musical Awards.

Play “Banya Ajae” (Korean “Uncle Vanya”) — May 22–31, National Theater of Korea This localized take on Chekhov reframes his mundane, everyday life and emotions through a contemporary Korean lens.

Second half of 2026

Musical “Hell's Kitchen” — July, GS Arts Center Broadway’s Alicia Keys jukebox musical, a semiautobiographical coming-of-age story set in 1990s Manhattan, is set to make its Korean debut with a Korean cast. Specific dates are yet to be announced.

Musical adaptation of Disney’s “Frozen” — August, Charlotte Theater Disney's Broadway musical is slated to debut in Korea with a Korean cast. Specific dates are yet to be announced.

Folk music concert “Creative Works Series Sinpungnyujeon” — Sept. 4, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts The contemporary Korean traditional music project is inspired by Kim Hong-do's painting “Boating on a Moonlit Night.”

Dance show “Gut: Whispering Steps” — Sept. 10–13, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts The Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre company, best known for “Ilmu,” or "One Dance,” is set to debut a new shaman-inspired work.

Play “Yeokhaenggi” — Sept. 3–13, Myeongdong Theater The National Theater Company of Korea is scheduled to stage the Grand Prize winner of the 2024 New Play Competition (translated), which follows a mythical journey inspired by “Descent of Inanna into the Underworld,” with women across generations confronting their wounds and helping each other heal in solidarity.

Play “Sumire’s Hair Salon” — Sept. 12–Oct. 3, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts This play by Chong Wishing, a Zainichi Korean playwright, is set in a 1960s Kyushu coal mining town and centers on a salon owner and other families fractured by industrial tragedy and a state-led repatriation program to North Korea.

Musical concert “The Choir of Man” — Sept. 18–Jan. 3, NOL Theater Daehakro The pub-themed British musical is known for its immersive atmosphere, including serving beer to audiences midshow.

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]