Classic plays return in National Theater Company of Korea's 2025 slate

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Classic plays return in National Theater Company of Korea's 2025 slate

Published: 07 Jan. 2025, 14:06 Updated: 07 Jan. 2025, 15:08

SHIN MIN-HEE
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A scene from “Manseon: The Yearning of a Fisherman,″ set to return to the stage from March 6 to 30 at the Myeongdong Theater in central Seoul. [NATIONAL THEATER COMPANY OF KOREA]

The National Theater Company of Korea announced its lineup of plays set for 2025. While the genres vary, these plays all collectively deal with the narratives of human life, specifically “existentialism, desire, free will and latent power,” the theater company said in a press release.

Two Korean classics are returning to the stage this year: “Manseon: The Yearning of a Fisherman” from March 6 to 30 and “Shimsanggihaeng” (tentative title) from July 17 to Aug. 3, both at the Myeongdong Theater in central Seoul.

“Manseon: The Yearning of a Fisherman” debuted in 1964 through a playwriting contest by the National Theater of Korea and tackles the societal issues of exploitation, poverty and generational conflicts. The trademark of the play is the estimated five tons of heavy rain that fall on the stage toward the end.

“Shimsanggihaeng” is based on the 1947 play “A Little Monk” written by Ham Se-deok, which follows a young monk who yearns for his mother after he is left in the woods. The piece is known for its romantic lyricism.

A scene from “Twelfth Night,” set to be held from June 12 to July 6 at the Myeongdong Theater in central Seoul. [NATIONAL THEATER COMPANY OF KOREA]

There will also be a number of foreign plays remade by the theater company: “Mother of Him” from April 2 to 19 at the National Theater of Korea’s Daloreum Theater in Jung District, central Seoul, and the first two installments of the five-part series “Anthropolis” in October and November.

“Mother of Him,” written by Canadian British playwright Evan Placey, is a domestic drama that follows the mother of a teenage rapist and the challenges of motherhood. Placey has won accolades for the Samuel French Canadian Play Contest and the King’s Cross Award for New Writing following the play’s premiere in 2010.

For the Korean version, actor Kim Sun-young will play the titular character.

“Anthropolis I-V,” by German playwright Roland Schimmelpfennig, delves into the tragedies of the Theban kings in ancient Greek mythology, with characters such as Dionysus, Laios, Oedipus, Jocasta and Antigone appearing.

The first part, titled “Prolog/Dionysos,” will be staged from Oct. 10 to 26 along with the second part, “Laios,” from Nov. 6 to 22, all at the Myeongdong Theater. The last three installments will continue in 2026.

A scene from ″The Ballads for Roxanne,” set to be held from April 10 to 27 at the Myeongdong Theater in central Seoul. [NATIONAL THEATER COMPANY OF KOREA]

Theatergoers can also check out two plays based on Korean traditions, with the theater company teasing that it will travel overseas in the future.

The first piece, “Twelfth Night,” will be held from June 12 to July 6 at the Myeongdong Theater. An adaptation of the play of the same name by William Shakespeare circa 1601, it takes place instead at the frontal coasts of Incheon during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910).

“Heo Nanseolheon” (tentative title) will be held from Nov. 22 to 30 at the National Theater of Korea’s Haeoreum Theater in central Seoul. The play centers on the eponymous Korean painter and poet (1563-1589) from the Joseon Dynasty, who suffered a life of endless anguish due to social constraints on females.

Other plays set to hit the stage this year are “The Ballads for Roxanne” from April 10 to 27, “Hedda Gabler” from May 8 to June 1 and “The Orphan of Zhao: Seeds of Revenge” from Dec. 4 to 28.

All plays will offer shows with English subtitles, with the schedule set to be revealed later.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]