Korean Musical Maria Maria Begins Performances Tonight

The U.S. premiere of the award-winning Korean musical Maria Maria will begin tonight at the Gerald W. Lynch Theatre at John Jay College. An official opening is set for October 1 at 7 PM.

The show, with book and lyrics by Hye Jung Yu and music by Gyung Chan Cha, was chosen as an official entry to the New York Musical Theatre Festival.

In this award-winning musical, Maria is a prostitute who leads a miserable life serving Roman soldiers.  Wanting to escape her fate, she makes a deal that will change her life.  With the rising popularity of Jesus, his opponents make her an offer to seduce him. If successful, her reward is a chance to go to Rome to redeem her life.

Under the direction of Cheon Mo Seong, with choreography by In Sook Choi, Maria Maria received its world premiere in Seoul, South Korea in 2003 and will be performed by an all-Korean cast in Korean (with supertitles).

Recreating their roles are original Korean cast members Hyo Sung Kang, who received the 2004 Korean Musical Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Maria, legendary Korean pop-star Bock Hee Yoon as The Blind Woman and Sang Woo Park as Jesus. The 25-member cast features Korean pop-star Sonya and Gain Choi who share the pivotal title role and Seung Chul Lee as The Pharisee.

Performances begin tonight for a limited engagement through October 15.

The show plays Tuesday through Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 2 PM and 8 PM, and Sunday at 3 PM and 7 PM. Tickets are $65, and available online at www.theatermania.com, or by visiting www.nymf.org.

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