SOUTH KOREA THEATER REVIEWS

Nine years after last setting foot in Vancouver, BC, the K-pop girl group, TWICE, returned to the city for a long-awaited homecoming. The group last visited in 2017 while filming the music video for their hit song, “Likey,” a moment many fans still associate with the city. On January 9 and 10, 2...

How far would you go for a great piece of writing? Choke someone to death? How about faking a murder that will bring casualties to your loved ones? Though it seems intense, Sidney Bruhl did one of these acts, for an entrancing piece of work. The charming yet dangerous play, DEATHTRAP had its first 2...

Actors holding various instruments made their way up to the seats, greeting the audience, waving hands. Soon, some of the violinists began to strike a note, with others dancing along. On stage, some were showing magic tricks to the audience members, receiving rounds of applause. Once, the lights dim...

William Shakespeare and his works are no doubt, one of the most popular subject matter for numerous films, shows, and theatrical pieces. INSIDE WILLIAM takes a slightly different approach, by displaying a story of how his masterpieces were created. Come along as we follow Shakespeare’s writing jou...

Rejoice fellow Ozians of South Korea, after 5 years, WICKED has once again come to us with a new production. Having this year’s production first show on February 12 at Bluesquare Shinhan Card Hall, this production is special in that not only will they be performing in Seoul, for the first time eve...

Based on the novel by the same name by Alexandre Dumas, MONTE CRISTO the Musical follows the life of Edmond Dantès, a young naive second mate of a French ship whose life plummeted on the happiest day of his life. Framed by the people he trusted, Edmond is locked up for life and after 15 years of su...

'Seasons of Love', one of the most well-known numbers of RENT has been sung in various South Korean media. It would not be an exaggeration to say that 'Seasons of Love' is a musical number that all South Koreans would have at least once, along with 'This is the Moment' from JEKYLL & HYDE. Celebratin...

A musical that is loved among people all over the world and continuously reproduced, a show that tells the story of the people who still lived despite all the hardships, which goes by the name, RENT. After a seven-year intermission, RENT greeted the long-awaited audience of Korea on June 13th....

On an extremely hot August day of 1892, in the house of Borden, a terrible incident happened. All is left are two corpses, one suspect, and three witnesses. Thus begins the journey of LIZZIE the musical. LIZZIE had its first performance on April 2 at the Dream Art Center Theater 1....

With a title that may arouse a lot of questions about what the show will be about, THE GODDESS IS WATCHING successfully ended its 6th production. With actors who participated in the show for several productions along with actors who are participating in this show for the first time, THE GODDESS IS W...

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,' is a phrase used to encourage an optimistic attitude, to change something undesirable to something more pleasant. Casey, a young Elvis impersonator uses this phrase to the fullest as his life takes a sudden turn. THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA MCBRIDE had its first...

The subtle scent of daffodils filled the theatre as the audience was welcomed with a beautiful scene that looked like it was straight of a fairytale. The floor of the deck opened slightly to reveal a space filled with bright, vibrant yellow flowers. 'Daffodils' and 'fairytale' are the two keywords t...

With the shrieking whistle-like sound, the curtain dropped to reveal a dark alley of London. Suddenly, actors appeared from everywhere as the famous song, 'The Ballad of Sweeney Todd' began. The dim lights and fog, the detailed sets, and the actors' gruesome makeup and costumes were enough to make m...

a??What comes to your mind when you hear a?oedeath?a?? Black clothes? People mourning? Commonly, 'death' has negative connotations with strong emotional connections to sadness and tragedy. However, there is one musical that will make you have a new perspective about death. LEESEONDONG CLEAN CENTER w...

People jumping around, loud rock music blasting, people on stage throwing water onto the audiencea?? From first glance, you would have thought that this was a rock concert, however, you are mistaken! This is no rock concert or any concert at all, it is the curtain call of a musical. One of Korea's m...

 In 2017, when BEN-HUR was first introduced to the Korean audience, the response to the a?oenew, innovative, eye-openinga?? show was sensational. Not only did this Korean original musical production have continuous sold-out shows, but it also maintained an average of 98% of audience attendance rate...

a?oePutrida?? was the word used in a review of Emile Zola's novel, THERÈSE RAQUIN in the newspaper Le Figaro. When the innovative novel was first published in 1867, readers were shocked at the explicit illustration of adultery and murder, therefore the novel was considered scandalous and leading to...

"The School of Rock!" as the introduction blared out through the speakers, kids rocking school uniforms holding instruments the size of their bodies ran out to the stage. The familiar tune of "School of Rock (Teacher's Pet)" began to play and I was instantly brought back to my elementary school sixt...

Seoul Performing Arts Company(SPAC) comes back with another original musical this year. ALONG WITH THE GODS: LAND OF THE LIVING is a sequel to ALONG WITH THE GODS, which is now a major SPAC repertoire. Just like ALONG WITH THE GODS, the sequel is also an adaptation of the webtoon of the same title. ...

The main story of a theatrical performance could be about everything. Whether it is cats signing on stage about a Jellicle Ball or about a phantom lurking around an opera house. But did you ever imagine that somebody would write a musical about eggs? Well, that was the brilliant topic material Nick ...

Colorful lights began to flash as the orchestra started playing the first note. With a large bang, the led screens began to move upward revealing actors with black leather jackets posing, another bang now there were women with pink jackets. Suddenly, the actors all came out together and began to sin...

The first half of 2019 was a rather interesting moment for the Korean theater industry. Three shows that dealt about Galileo Galilei - LIFE OF GALILEO, THE FINAL TESTIMONY, and SIDEREUS - were staged at the same time, and it led many Korean theatregoers to learn and understand more about Galileo Gal...

Love, death, growth, family…There are no exact words to pinpoint what KILL ME NOW is about or how to define the essence of the play. To borrow the words of the company, KILL ME NOW is a story of them who are special but ordinary and a story of us. The play deals with issues that we know are import...

On the last day of your life, will you have anything you regret not doing? Will you regret not learning a new sport? A new language? FLY LIKE A BUTTERFLY, a new show in the Seoul Performing Arts Company's repertoire, successfully ended its first run on May 12th....

 One of America's first serial killers, con artist, bigamist, "Beast of Chicago," and "The Murder Hotel," what do these words have in common? They all have an association with the cold-blooded murderer, Herman Webster Mudgett, better known as H.H. Holmes. When it was announced that a musical about...