Song Seung-hwan unveils his new non-verbal musical

Unlike the popular K-pop and TV drama industry, Korea’s performing arts scene hasn’t been so foreigner-friendly in the past decade. Even today, it’s hard to come across a show that provides English subtitles in Seoul’s prominent theater district Daehangno.

Many foreign visitors, however, will be delighted to learn about the latest project by popular musical producer Song Seung-hwan, whose 1997 show “Nanta” was a global hit. The show is titled “Wedding,” and it’s certainly foreigner-friendly.

In many ways, “Wedding” is much like Song’s 1997 work. “Nanta,” which told the simple story of three Korean chefs preparing meals for a wedding banquet, received international acclaim for its unique theatrical and musical composition. The culinary-themed musical, which was almost completely non-verbal, consisted of pantomime, acrobatics, audience participation and improvised musical instruments ― such as kitchen knives and water canisters.

“Wedding” is also non-verbal; its actors and actresses sing, dance, act, and play over 20 musical instruments at the same time. It’s certainly a one-of-a-kind performance, specifically designed to draw foreign audiences.

“Only about 10 percent of the foreigners who visited Korea last year watched a local theater show during their stay here,” Song told reporters during a press conference on Tuesday.

“And among the 10 percent, which makes about 1.1 million people, 700,000 of them watched “Nanta.” The number is simply incomparable to what it was like back in the late 90s. We’ve come a long way, and I thought it was important to make another foreigner-friendly show as soon as possible.”

The show is a comical theatrical portrait of an ordinary Korean wedding, where the bride’s father isn’t particularly fond of his future son-in-law. Song follows the groom’s hilarious efforts to impress his father-in-law prior to the wedding ceremony, mixed with rhythmic music and dance.

The show features a number of popular folksongs of many different countries, including Japan’s “Sakura,” old English folk piece “Yankee Doodle,” and the Scottish piece “Annie Laurie.”

Song said it was especially challenging to find performing artists who can dance, act, and play instruments at the same time for the show. “In fact, it was impossible,” he said.

“So I selected the ones who showed talent and seemed to have a lot of time on their hands to be committed to this project. The selected ones went through rigorous training for about six months. And they’ve shown some miraculous progress.”

Some of the more than 20 musical instruments that appear in this show include tin whistle, kazoo and simple wine glasses filled with water.

“Wedding” runs from June 14 to July 29 at PMC Daehangno Theater in Daehangno, Seoul. All seats are 40,000 won. For tickets and information, call (02) 736-8289.

By Claire  Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)