Filipina friend in Arirang Fantasy

         Just read a blog entry written by Kring Elenzano (http://funnysexy.ph/)about her friend Cherish Maningat-Bae who happens to be also my friend. Cherish plays a lead role in Arirang Fantasy, a Korean musical

           "a heart-warming musical that is currently showing in different cities in Korea. It tells the story of a Filipina woman, who fell in love with a Korean man. However, her story did not turn out to be like those Tagalized Koreanovelas that she used to watch on TV. Her husband died early and she ended up taking care of their farm, her daughter and even the mother-in-law" (http://funnysexy.ph/)

            I've always been proud of Cherish. Her jolly, charming and humble personality makes everyone comfortable. She may be making waves right now through this musical but she's not only an actress. She's also a play director. I've seen two of her plays when she was still taking her graduate studies here in Korea. The plays she directed also received good responses from the audience, a proof of her talent not just in acting but also directing.

           Anyway, I'm definitely gonna watch this musical ^^  The musical will be until August this year.

Check these links for more information

http://funnysexy.ph/2011/06/filipina-plays-lead-role-in-korean-musical-arirang-fantasy/

http://blog.naver.com/ja10041004?Redirect=Log&logNo=150110440329

http://blog.naver.com/summusical?Redirect=Log&logNo=70109481488

Coreal Nights: Hwarang Musical

Since I promised my Hwarang friend I will let more people watch his show, I invited some of my friends to go and watch it. Convincing them was a bit challenging because of the language, Korean. But I guess the language did not hinder the fun and excitement they felt when they watched it. My group Coreal (Jehee, Ben and Annie plus guest Jennifer, Ben's girlfriend kkk) and my other friends Shaki, Hongvan, Windu and Carlos were the first people I invited to watch.

Everyone told me it was great and that they loved it. They even said that the musical has to be in a bigger theater so that it could accommodate more and more audiences. One of my friends said that the ticket was very cheap for the show. It should be more expensive because the quality of the show is really good. We had a discount for the ticket since one of the actors is my friend but still, I guess the original price 30,000 won is not expensive at all.

One of my friends said that she also had so much fun during the autograph signing session with casts. lol. Every after the show, the audience could get signs from the actors. I just find it a bit funny since they get sign from my friend. I'm just not used to it. lol.

Before going, I did not tell them who my friend was so that they would give me fair evaluation after the show. lol. They said all actors' voices were really good. If they were to pick one it would be hard. But most of them said my Hwarang friend is their favorite which made my friend very happy after I told him.

My Hwarang Friend!

My Korean friend invited me to watch his play in Daehangno today. Since I haven’t seen him for a long time, why not go and probably have a sort of long time no see chitchat. It was a bit hard to locate the theater since it was my first time to watch a show in the area. I just relied on my friend’s instruction but with the help of iPhone’s navigation application I was able to find it. Enough with the plugging let’s proceed to the musical!

Bits about the Musical

The musical is called Hwarang. Hwarang were elite/ aristocratic group of men during the Silla Kingdom who were gathered to study, play and learn the arts of war. (To learn more about Hwarang please click

http://hwarang.org/Ancienthistory.html).

This all-male cast musical has definitely a lot of things to offer to its audience. The song selections were really good. Maybe someone would think that the songs would be a bit “boring” or draggy since the time setting would be ancient Korea…definitely not in this musical. The songs made the musical lively and fun to watch. The voices of the actors were also amazing. Even people who do not understand Korean language would enjoy because they can just simply go with the beat. The musical has different scenes portraying friendships, adventures, challenges before becoming a Hwarang. It’s so hard to explain everything in a blog. You must go and watch it yourself!

After the show, my friend called me to wait and have a cup of coffee somewhere. Daehangno area was still very alive. I never expected that my friend is very "professional" in theater. lol. He even had many fans waiting for him outside the theater. I told him that I would definitely invite my friends to watch it. 

 
You should watch too!

Directions:

Exit 4 of Hyehwa Station (look for the nearest Paris Baguette from the exit. Then take the small road beside it which will lead you to the theater 열린극장.

Schedule: Weekdays except Mondays: 8pm

                Weekends: 3pm and 7pm

               *no plays on Mondays

Ticket is only for 30,000 won. Ticket booth usually opens 40 minutes before the show starts. If you contact me I might ask my friend to give you a discount. lol

2010 Musicals in Korea

Here are some exciting musicals to watch this 2010. "Contact" will open the New Year on Jan. 8-17 at LG Arts Center and on Jan. 22-31 at Goyang Aram Nuri Arts Complex. Starring celebrated ballerina Kim Joo-won, the dance musical will be presented only through dances without songs.

"Mozart!" will premiere in Korea on Jan.19 to Feb. 22 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. The Austrian musical will be made into the local rendition with the starry casting of Xiah of TVXQ, Im Tae-kyung, Park Kun-hyung and Park Eun-tae who all will alternate playing Mozart.

"The Count of Monte Christo" composed by celebrated musician Frank Wildhorn renowned for "Jekyll and Hyde" will be shown in Korea for the first time. The Swiss musical is the newest one of Wildhorn's works. Based on the 1845 novel of the same name, the musical will be adapted into the Korean version on April 22 to June 13 at Universal Art Center.

Among others, "Billy Elliot" might be the most anticipated musical next year. Slated to run from August in 2010 to February in 2011 at LG Arts Center, the musical swept the 10 Tony Awards this year since it premiered last year on Broadway. The Korean production is now underway for searching for the best actors for the roles.

Also, "Tears of Heaven," the first original American commission for Korea, will make its debut next year and the exact date has not been decided. The original story takes place in Vietnam in 1968 and is a love triangle between a beautiful Vietnamese singer, a Korean private, and an American Colonel set against the backdrop of the days during the Vietnam War. The full production in Korea will feature dance, mask work, and other unique forms of puppetry, dance, and combat choreography. The score represents a combination of Asian, French, and pop genres.

For the revival productions, "Miss Saigon" (May 13-Sept. 12 at Chungmu Art Hall), "Jekyll and Hyde" (Nov.23-May 1 in 2011 at Charlotte Theater) and "Aida" (December at Seongnam Art Center) will be presented

Full Story:
Show Must Go On: High-Quality Musicals, Plays in 2010
by Chung Ah-young (chungay@koreatimes.co.kr )

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2009/12/151_57791.html