New premieres, old favorites, reworked revivals: Summer's musicals in three acts
Major productions are heating up Korea’s musical theater market this summer, with three distinct approaches: new works making their Korean debut, long-running favorites returning for fresh seasons and extensively reworked "2.0 versions" of past hits.
“Summer was once considered the off-season for musicals because it overlapped with vacation season, but things changed this year,” said Won Jong-won, musical critic and dean of SCH Media Labs at Soonchunhyang University. “Production companies seem to be targeting the summer market with works spanning a range of genres.”
Major new productions
Several large-scale musicals that made their mark on Broadway are arriving in Korea in quick succession this summer.
“Hell’s Kitchen,” a jukebox musical built around the hits of 17-time Grammy winner Alicia Keys, opens at the GS Arts Center in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on July 24. The show premiered on Broadway in 2024, and Keys also served as a producer on the Korean production.
“One of the things that was most exciting and surprising to me about integrating my music into the show was seeing how the songs landed inside this story,” Keys told the JoongAng Ilbo in a written interview. “I've never heard my songs in Korean before! This is a gift!”
“Frozen: The Hit Broadway Musical” makes its Korean premiere Aug. 13 at the Charlotte Theater in Songpa District, southern Seoul.
The stage version adds 12 new numbers to the film’s original soundtrack. Jeong Sun-ah, Jung Yu-ji and Min Kyung-ah will alternate as Elsa, and Park Jin-joo, Hong Geum-bi and Choi Ji-hye as Anna.
“The Korean production will be the best and most complete version to date,” associate director Adrian Sarple said.
Alongside the major Broadway productions, a Korean original is holding its own.
“Yumi’s Cells,” based on the webtoon of the same name that has drawn 3.5 billion views worldwide, opened June 30 at the CJ Towol Theater of the Seoul Arts Center in Seocho District, southern Seoul.
The musical follows the personal growth of Yumi, an ordinary office worker. A new character called Trainee Cell 109, not found in the original webtoon, plays a central role in the stage adaptation.
Tried-and-true favorites
“The Days,” one of Korea’s best-known jukebox musicals, opened its seventh season June 9 at the D-Cube Link Arts Center in Guro District, western Seoul.
The musical follows two disappearances involving presidential security officers, one in 1992 and another in 2022, that gradually prove to be connected.
“Dracula: The Musical,” which has become one of Korea’s most popular musicals since its 2014 premiere, opened its seventh season July 10 at LG Signature Hall at LG Arts Center Seoul in Gangseo District, western Seoul.
Based on Bram Stoker's 1897 novel of the same name, the musical follows Dracula’s centuries-long love for one woman. Shin Sung-rok, Kim Jun-su, Jeon Dong-suk and Ko Eun-sung alternate in the title role.
Former K-pop star Kim’s portrayal, nicknamed “Xiacula” after his stage name XIA, has long been defined by iconic red hair, which he kept up through the show’s 10th-anniversary run. This season, he appears with black hair instead.
“It is too difficult to maintain red hair,” Kim has said. “The 10th-anniversary production will be my last Dracula with red hair.”
Extensively revised ‘2.0 versions’
Musicals typically evolve with each new season, but the production team behind the current revival of “Beethoven” has gone further, emphasizing just how different it is from the 2023 premiere.
Much of the original love story has been cut to focus more heavily on Beethoven’s artistic struggles — a change that appears to be paying off.
“After revisions to the songs and story, the revival of ‘Beethoven’ is, in a positive sense, a different work from the premiere,” music critic Won said.
“Elisabeth,” preparing to open its sixth Korean season, is also promoting itself as a fresh version.
“Compared with previous productions, we focused primarily on visual changes, including major revisions to the stage set, direction and costumes,” the production company said.
The musical, which premiered in Korea in 2012, portrays the life of Elisabeth, empress of Austria and queen of Hungary. It opens Aug. 16 at Woori WON Banking Hall at Blue Square in Yongsan District, central Seoul.
BY HA NAM-HYUN [kim.hayoon1@joongang.co.kr]
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