BTS Permission to Dance On Stage - Seoul: Live Viewing

The concert is held in Seoul and given live at the same time to cinemas around the world. The group takes the stage in its own country after a long break; concerts had not been possible for a long period because of the pandemic and this show marks the end of that stretch. The programme covers a wide repertoire: early songs, English singles and solo sections. The staging is large; rising platforms, dance teams and screen walls are used. Because of restrictions the audience cannot cheer and takes part by clapping. Ha Jung-jae directs. RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook are on stage. It was given as a live broadcast; the recording was not edited afterwards and the cinema audience watched in real time. The form spread during the pandemic; part of the concert revenue came from cinema screenings. It is not a documentary; there is no backstage section and the film consists entirely of the concert. The camera plan uses many angles and the cutting is fast; that choice can be tiring in a cinema. The sound was prepared separately for the concert and arranged for cinema systems. Its limit is form; this is a concert recording and it would be wrong to look for a language of cinema. Another limit is access; a three hour programme feels long to anyone who does not know the repertoire. Who it is for: listeners of the group and viewers who like concert recordings. Who it is not for: it is long for anyone unfamiliar, the cutting fast, and no context is given.