The History of Korean Western Theatre
In the documentary theatre performance The History of Korean Western Theatre, Jaha Koo investigates the influence of the Western theatre tradition on Korean theatre. In this final piece of his Hamartia trilogy, Jaha Koo resolutely focuses on the future. With a new generation of South Koreans in mind, he attempts to break with a tradition full of self-censorship and keeping up appearances. Because only when based on an authentic version of history, he can pass on a future to the next generation.
Celebrating the centenary of Korean theatre in 2008, the South Korean theatre maker / composer Jaha Koo realized that there is actually no space for Korean theatre tradition: what is regarded as Korean theatre is largely determined by the Western canon. But why are the South Koreans so proud of this Western interpretation? And why does everyone keep referring to Shakespeare? It raises questions about tradition, self-censorship and authenticity.
In this final piece of his Hamartia trilogy, Jaha Koo resolutely focuses on the future. Meticulously, he exposes the tragic impact of the past on our lives, unveiling the small cracks in modern Confucianism - an ideology that continues to define the moral system, way of life and social relations between generations in South Korea. With a new generation of South Koreans in mind, he attempts to break with a tradition full of self-censorship and keeping up appearances. Because only when based on an authentic version of history, he can pass on a future to the next generation.
Like the performances Lolling & Rolling and Cuckoo, which respectively focused on South Korea's past and present, The History of Korean Western Theatre is an intelligent documentary theatre performance in which Jaha Koo interweaves personal stories with historical, political and sociological facts. Often themes that contain a clash of Eastern and Western culture: from cutting string of tongue to make it in the West, to the heavy personal toll of Western interference on a macroeconomic level.
Wed 6.07 18.00 Väike saal
Thu 7.07 19.00 Väike saal
Duration: 60 min
Korean spoken with Estonian and English subtitles
Concept, text, direction, music & video Jaha Koo; performance Jaha Koo, Seri & Toad; dramaturgy Dries Douibi; scenography and drawing Eunkyung Jeong; artistic advisor Pol Heyvaert; technical Korneel Coessens, Jan Berckmans, Bart Huybrechts, Koen Goossens (& Jonas Castelijns); hardware hacking Idella Craddock; research Eunkyung Jeong & Jaha Koo; research assistance Sang Ok Kim; interview Jooyoung Koh, Kiran Kim & Kyungmi Lee; production CAMPO; co-produced by Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels), Münchner Kammerspiele, Frascati Producties (Amsterdam), Veem House for Performance (Amsterdam), SPRING performing arts festival (Utrecht), Zürcher Theaterspektakel, Black Box teater (Oslo), International Summer Festival Kampnagel (Hamburg), Tanzquartier Wien, wpZimmer (Antwerp), Théâtre de la Bastille (Paris) & Festival d’Automne à Paris; residencies Kunstencentrum BUDA (Kortrijk), wpZimmer (Antwerp), Decoratelier Jozef Wouters (Brussels), Doosan Art Center (Seoul); with the support of Beursschouwburg, Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie & Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst. Translation into Estonian Maarja Aaloe.
CAMPO is supported by the city of Ghent and the Flemish Community.
