K-pop Cover Dance Festival in Canada 2022
Wow it feels great to be able to fully celebrate K-pop in person again!
Even before I was lucky enough to become an Honorary Reporter for the Korean Cultural Centre Canada and the Embassy of the Republic of Korea, I was attending as many K-pop Cover Dance events as I could, because I’ve always been a dancer myself, and what could be better than combining two things I love?
Obviously the pandemic put a big damper on things— events were canceled in 2020, and in 2021 there were still restrictions —but all that was immediately forgotten as soon as we were all together again for 2022’s K-pop Cover Dance Festival on September 18th.
In spite of rainy weather there were people lined up all the way around the venue building and down the street, everyone hoping for a good seat and buzzing with a type of energy that only K-pop fans can produce. There’s no possible way cold air and a biting wind could overwhelm the warmth and excitement of this community. It’s really nice to know that even when I attend these events alone, there are always people to chat and cheer with.
Oh, I should probably mention… the reason for the crazy long line? At this particular Festival, there were special guests invited, who came all the way from Korea: K-pop group P1Harmony.
Funnily enough, as I ended up going to the Festival alone, I went up to the balcony and was seated at the end of a row that was directly behind a reserved row. Typically these reserved rows are for the competing dancers, so they have somewhere to sit to watch the special guests after they’re done with their performances, so I expected to have a clear look at the stage for most of the night. However, as I was attempting to record the opening statement from the Consulate General, a group of people, being seated in the reserved row, walked directly in front of my camera. I was a little annoyed but hey, they probably just wanted to watch their friends perform before they went on. I lowered my camera and glanced at them; they were all really attractive, but like all the dancers at these festivals are good-looking, so I didn’t think much of it right away. Then I saw they were all being handed clipboards. Then I saw an older man telling people on the opposite side of the aisle not to take photos. That’s when I put it together: I was sitting directly behind the P1Harmony boys. Out of respect I didn’t sneak any photos of them, but they seemed so sweet (and adorable! My noona senses were going crazy, I just wanted to pat their heads and give them candy).
I did my best to take a nice steady video of each team’s performance, but there may be a few shaky moments throughout, or the odd head in the shot (if it makes you feel any better, it was the heads of the P1Harmony boys)! Please enjoy.
TEAM 1 - DOMIN’O
TEAM 2 - K-RAVE
TEAM 3 - RPM DANCE
TEAM 4 - DREAMSCAPE
TEAM 5 - WAK CREW
TEAM 6 - 0’CLOCK
TEAM 7 - B-WARE
TEAM 8 - SYNAPTIK
TEAM 9 - 11:11
TEAM 10 - SYNK
TEAM 11 - SALJA
TEAM 12 - DZ*ONE
I realize that it might be disappointing that I’m not also including any videos of P1Harmony, but the truth is that I was more focused on enjoying myself and paying attention to them, rather than watch everything through a camera (and my arms were pretty sore by that point). I guarantee some other attendees took videos though, so just check YouTube in a day or two. Heck, the group may post an official video on their own page!
As always, I’m so grateful to the KCC for putting on so many great events to celebrate Korean culture, and giving us all an opportunity to be together for these unique experiences.
Oh! You probably want to know who placed in the competition, and who won the grand prize which includes a trip to Korea. Well, I wanted to feature all the teams equally, without putting any specific emphasis on the judging, because to me they’re all inspiring winners. Feel free to check the KCC’s social media for an announcement though!