Talchum is a traditional Korean dance performed while wearing a mask. It originated during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). Talchum literally means 'mask dance' and was enjoyed by commoners to release pent-up frustrations while concealing their identity behind a mask. It is an open-air event in which performers and spectators mingle freely together. When a talchum performance was held, the whole village people would congregate for a day of festivity.  

Popular themes include ridiculing corrupt noblemen and the conflict between an ugly wife and a seductive concubine. The dance was performed on the first full moon, Buddha's birthday, Dano festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, and Chuseok, which is equivalent to Thanksgiving in the U.S.

A unique part of 'talchum' is the participation of the audience toward the end of a performance. Distinction between the actors and the audience fades toward the end, as everyone joins together in robust dance to close the performance.

Talchum has been transmitted from all parts of the country. There are about 13 different types of the talchum with each region having its own unqiue mask and dance. 

The long tradition of 'talchum' was almost lost, but it re-gained widespread popularity on university campuses in the 1980s during the democratic movement. Nowadays it has been largely popularized as a form of folk entertainment.