Home > Photo News

【July 29th=KEJ Koo Hye-Jin/ Translator= Jeong Ji-Hyun】The “Korean wave” is expanding its influence to an even greater extent, into artistic fields beyond just music. This summer, various musicals are going abroad in an attempt to open a new age in Hallyu.
Following the example of the musical “Goong” – which played in Kyoto from June 11th to July 1st and was completely sold out – the musical version of “200 Pounds Beauty,” starring Kara’s leader Park Kyu-Ri as one of the leading roles, will land on Japan on October 8th through the Osaka Shochiku Theater. It also plans on playing in Beijing and Singapore afterwards.
On July 29th, a production report conference for “200 Pounds Beauty” was held at the Korean Culture Center in Yotsuya, Tokyo. Shochiku Theater’s personnel revealed, “For the past few years during which we’ve heard a lot about high-quality Korean musicals, we’ve been dreaming of a day when we would be able to play them at our own venue. We met CJ Entertainment just in time; through this production, we hope to collaborate on creating a new form of entertainment.”
A “Musical Hallyu” was already in the making in 2008, when SM Entertainment – the central force of the international K-Pop wave – formed the “SM Arts Company” to specialize in various arts performances including musicals. In fact, big, multiracial crowds have always filled the venues of the musicals “Mozart” and “Goong,” each starring JYJ’s Kim Jun-Su and TVXQ’s U-Know Yun-Ho, respectively.
Now, many more Korean musicals ambitiously look forward to playing in Japan and other Asian countries. It’s too early to get too excited, of course, since most of these efforts take advantage of popular idol stars instead of pure artistic quality. What is certain is that once Korea starts actively developing its musical culture using K-Pop as a resourceful foundation, it won’t be long until an “Asian Broadway” sets foot into a broader world market. (Photography=Shochiku)