K-Content News
Korean traditional tale 'Chunhyangjeon' told as comic opera
- May 11, 2021
Korean traditional tale 'Chunhyangjeon' told as comic opera
Updated : 2021-05-10 17:34
By Park Ji-won
Opera has not been one of the most popular stage performances in Korea. Of course, performances of Grammy-winning renowned soprano Jo Su-mi quickly sell out, but very few music lovers who have ordinarily enjoyed classical music choose to consume the genre, while still many prefer popular musicals, plays or traditional performances. However, the romantic comedy opera "The Chunhyang" aims to target a wide range of people by presenting the operatic version of a Korean traditional folk tale familiar to many and featuring skilled opera singers.
"The Chunhyang" written by Yoon Mi-hyun, with music composed by Nah Si-rin and directed by Kim Tae-woong, reinterprets "Chunhyangjeon," one of the most famous love stories based on pansori, or a traditional musical storytelling through singing, narrating and dancing, from the Joseon Kingdom, in a comical and twisted way.
The original tale is a satirical story of overcoming different social classes and exploring injustices of the time. It revolves around Chunhyang, a daughter of a gisaeng (female entertainer) Wolmae who is very beautiful and artistically talented and insists on her love for Yi Mong-ryong, the son of the district magistrate, who fell in love with Chunhyang at first sight despite their different social classes. When Byeon Hak-do, a new magistrate in the region where Chunhyang lives, exploits the local people for his personal interests and asks her to sleep with him, she refuses. She is then imprisoned and tortured for months while waiting for Yi who left the region to take the national exam to become a high-ranking official. Yi later becomes a higher ranking official and arrests Byeon, living happily ever after with Chunhyang.
Where the original story largely focuses on seeking "true love" by showing Chunhyang who remains hesitant in taking proactive steps, "The Chunhyang" highlights the female lead taking the initiative to pursue what she believes in and to save Yi while adding some twists to the portrayal of the work's characters.
In 2018, Sunwoo earned critical acclaim for expressing the sense of despair felt by teenagers through her music in "After My Death" (2018).
Chunhyang escapes from prison this time and heads to Seoul to find Yi. She ends up reporting Byeon through Yi for exploiting his people and succeeds. Reversing the original characters, it shows Byeon being deeply in love with Chunhyang and continuing to confess his love to her. Yi, meanwhile, remains laid-back and never becomes a high-ranking official failing to pass national exam.
"I would like to focus on Chunhyang's independency and willingness, as well as that of other female characters, to keep loving Yi regardless of his social class. When I studied the original script, she was a very self-assured and self-reliant woman. She chose her love and decided to be imprisoned to protect that love. I put female characters in the front and let them take important roles in the opera by describing Hyangdan, a handmaiden of Chunhyang, and Wolmae, as an independent women as well," Yoon said on the phone Friday.
"I reflected on the current situation where women's rights have largely improved over the decades. I was thinking of writing a story where the female characters build a kingdom by themselves. But I gave up on that idea to communicate to a larger audience."
The show doesn't include as much dialog as that of plays, but it shows actors acting with lines and dancing in between performances. As many of the actors are award-winning sopranos, baritones and tenors, the audiences can enjoy listening to highly skilled performances throughout the entire show.
The lyrics of the songs make use of the dialect of North Jeolla Province where Chunhyang lived in the story, and Korean audience members will feel a sense of nostalgia.
"The Chunhyang" runs through May 16 at Seoul Arts Center.
Opera has not been one of the most popular stage performances in Korea. Of course, performances of Grammy-winning renowned soprano Jo Su-mi quickly sell out, but very few music lovers who have ordinarily enjoyed classical music choose to consume the genre, while still many prefer popular musicals, plays or traditional performances. However, the romantic comedy opera "The Chunhyang" aims to target a wide range of people by presenting the operatic version of a Korean traditional folk tale familiar to many and featuring skilled opera singers.
"The Chunhyang" written by Yoon Mi-hyun, with music composed by Nah Si-rin and directed by Kim Tae-woong, reinterprets "Chunhyangjeon," one of the most famous love stories based on pansori, or a traditional musical storytelling through singing, narrating and dancing, from the Joseon Kingdom, in a comical and twisted way.
The original tale is a satirical story of overcoming different social classes and exploring injustices of the time. It revolves around Chunhyang, a daughter of a gisaeng (female entertainer) Wolmae who is very beautiful and artistically talented and insists on her love for Yi Mong-ryong, the son of the district magistrate, who fell in love with Chunhyang at first sight despite their different social classes. When Byeon Hak-do, a new magistrate in the region where Chunhyang lives, exploits the local people for his personal interests and asks her to sleep with him, she refuses. She is then imprisoned and tortured for months while waiting for Yi who left the region to take the national exam to become a high-ranking official. Yi later becomes a higher ranking official and arrests Byeon, living happily ever after with Chunhyang.
Where the original story largely focuses on seeking "true love" by showing Chunhyang who remains hesitant in taking proactive steps, "The Chunhyang" highlights the female lead taking the initiative to pursue what she believes in and to save Yi while adding some twists to the portrayal of the work's characters.
In 2018, Sunwoo earned critical acclaim for expressing the sense of despair felt by teenagers through her music in "After My Death" (2018).
Chunhyang escapes from prison this time and heads to Seoul to find Yi. She ends up reporting Byeon through Yi for exploiting his people and succeeds. Reversing the original characters, it shows Byeon being deeply in love with Chunhyang and continuing to confess his love to her. Yi, meanwhile, remains laid-back and never becomes a high-ranking official failing to pass national exam.
"I would like to focus on Chunhyang's independency and willingness, as well as that of other female characters, to keep loving Yi regardless of his social class. When I studied the original script, she was a very self-assured and self-reliant woman. She chose her love and decided to be imprisoned to protect that love. I put female characters in the front and let them take important roles in the opera by describing Hyangdan, a handmaiden of Chunhyang, and Wolmae, as an independent women as well," Yoon said on the phone Friday.
"I reflected on the current situation where women's rights have largely improved over the decades. I was thinking of writing a story where the female characters build a kingdom by themselves. But I gave up on that idea to communicate to a larger audience."
The show doesn't include as much dialog as that of plays, but it shows actors acting with lines and dancing in between performances. As many of the actors are award-winning sopranos, baritones and tenors, the audiences can enjoy listening to highly skilled performances throughout the entire show.
The lyrics of the songs make use of the dialect of North Jeolla Province where Chunhyang lived in the story, and Korean audience members will feel a sense of nostalgia.
"The Chunhyang" runs through May 16 at Seoul Arts Center.
Reporter : jwpark@koreatimes.co.kr
