The “Hong Kong Week 2021@Seoul” event will be pushed back by two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts announced Wednesday.

The change in schedule comes as the art center failed to get a green light from the government in February to have visiting artists from Hong Kong exempted from mandatory self-quarantine measures. The decision to postpone the event was made last week, an official from the Sejong Center said.

The postponement was necessary because “both the visiting artists and the art center have their schedules fixed for next year and could not make changes for 2022,” the Sejong Center said in a press release.

“All parties -- the government of Hong Kong, Hong Kong’s Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Hong Kong's Economic and Trade office -- agreed to reschedule the event to 2023,” the center said.

Originally planned to run from Aug. 27 to Sept. 5, Hong Kong Week 2021@Seoul aimed to promote cultural exchanges between Hong Kong and Korea. Eight teams of performers, including the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Hong Kong Ballet, were scheduled to perform during the 10-day event.

By Kang Jae-eun (kang.jaeeun@heraldcorp.com)