This summer an unprecedented 'war' that will change the landscape of dance survival shows begins. Mnet, which sparked a fierce dance syndrome in Korea, is now set to shake up the global performance scene by putting the true rulers behind the stage front and center.
Beyond a simple dance battle, an intense, brainy survival of directors who will create a vast work of art, Mnet "Street World Fighter: Directors War" (hereafter Sdifa) is scheduled to premiere in August.
Ahead of that, the 'Sdifa' side has finally unveiled the lineup of 10 top choreographers who plan and complete the stage. While previous series focused on the fierce physical expressions of world-class dancers, this 'Sdifa' highlights the real showdown of 'performance directors' who oversee not only choreography creation but also staging, direction and stage utilization.
The lineup unveiled this time is truly like a 'performance all-star game,' ranging from first-generation legends to MZ rising stars leading global trends.
First, Bada, the leader of the winning crew of 'Street Woman Fighter 2' who shook Korea with the 'Smoke Challenge,' joins, along with NAIN, who became an icon of the MZ generation as leader of Turns, the winning team of 'Street Dance Girls Fighter' season 1, credited with choreography for BABYMONSTER. In addition, Renan, who led aespa's performance heyday; Shimizu, who built IVE's stage and created the distinct brand of the "heel choreo"; and Baby Joo of ALLDAY PROJECT, who led the trend of mixed-gender groups in the pop world, have joined to complete a dazzling lineup.
The roster of male directors is equally striking. Back Kooyoung, a first-generation legend of SM performance directing who created iconic stages for EXO and The Boyz, holds the center. Also joining are Ingyu of WeDamBoys, who oversaw performances for NCT 127 and Stray Kids and managed Jennie's distinctive performances at last year's MMA and Golden Disc Awards, and Casper, who wrote part of SHINee's history and was the first K-pop male soloist to direct Taemin's Coachella stage, all of whom have thrown their hats in and stirred global fandom.
Also, Jung Minjun, leader of the dance team The Stories, which led Korea to victory at the U.S. 'VIBE Dance Competition' as the first Korean team and won again from 2024 through 2026, appears as a next-generation rising director, and Haesh, a master of 'mega performance' who led the multi-member performance crew ComHere and challenged the stage of America's Got Talent in the U.S., will participate to present overwhelmingly large-scale stages.
Responses from global fans to the head-to-head showdown of these 10 choreographers with such dazzling careers have already been explosive. When the lineup teaser video was released on the official YouTube channel 'The CHOOM' on the 19th, communities and social media heated up as their unprecedented portfolios were reexamined.
[Photo] Mnet 'Street World Fighter: Directors War'
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