Singaporean director blends Greek tragedy and Korean opera in 'Trojan Women' remake
- 7 years ago
Countless plays and literary pieces have been inspired by Homer's epic illiad.
One of them has been re-imagined in a traditional Korean performance genre, with some guidance from a Singaporean director.
Hwang Hojun introduces the piece to represent Korea at the Singapore International Festival of Arts.
"The Trojan Women" follows the fates of the women of Troy after their city has been sacked and their husbands killed, and they are about to be taken away as slaves.
Now, the story is being retold with a Korean twist in a new production that relies on changgeuk, a traditional genre similar to what could be thought of as Korean opera.
"This production of 'The Trojan Women' premieres here, at the National Theater of Korea's Daloreum Theater on Friday night. The show, presented in collaboration with the Singapore International Festival of Arts, distinguishes itself from other modern changgeuk productions via its minimalist approach."
The costumes are all in white or gray, solely to distinguish between the Trojans and the Greeks.
There are no flashy stage settings -- just a white gateway to ultimately transport the women into their misery.
"I want to hear the words. I want to be inside of the imagination of words. Right? Because you can never show war. You cannot show dead bodies around on stage. You cannot show the devastation. So, everything is imagined in the mind of the audience. And so we need to hear the words, but I also believe very much that the less we put on stage, the clearer we can imagine."
Ong says it's the breaking of the human voice that gives pansori its haunting beauty, enabling the actors to deliver the strong emotions demanded by the play.
And just as with traditional pansori, where the singer is accompanied only by a single drum, each character in the opera has its very own instrument.
For example,
"Playing Hecuba, the queen of Troy, I was paired with the geomungo, a traditional Korean zither. It has a very low and majestic sound, so it compl
One of them has been re-imagined in a traditional Korean performance genre, with some guidance from a Singaporean director.
Hwang Hojun introduces the piece to represent Korea at the Singapore International Festival of Arts.
"The Trojan Women" follows the fates of the women of Troy after their city has been sacked and their husbands killed, and they are about to be taken away as slaves.
Now, the story is being retold with a Korean twist in a new production that relies on changgeuk, a traditional genre similar to what could be thought of as Korean opera.
"This production of 'The Trojan Women' premieres here, at the National Theater of Korea's Daloreum Theater on Friday night. The show, presented in collaboration with the Singapore International Festival of Arts, distinguishes itself from other modern changgeuk productions via its minimalist approach."
The costumes are all in white or gray, solely to distinguish between the Trojans and the Greeks.
There are no flashy stage settings -- just a white gateway to ultimately transport the women into their misery.
"I want to hear the words. I want to be inside of the imagination of words. Right? Because you can never show war. You cannot show dead bodies around on stage. You cannot show the devastation. So, everything is imagined in the mind of the audience. And so we need to hear the words, but I also believe very much that the less we put on stage, the clearer we can imagine."
Ong says it's the breaking of the human voice that gives pansori its haunting beauty, enabling the actors to deliver the strong emotions demanded by the play.
And just as with traditional pansori, where the singer is accompanied only by a single drum, each character in the opera has its very own instrument.
For example,
"Playing Hecuba, the queen of Troy, I was paired with the geomungo, a traditional Korean zither. It has a very low and majestic sound, so it compl